Fight for Affection
by Mihzuki
Summary: Sakura & co. are in Suna for the chunin exams, but there's a lot more than test-taking going on. Sakura finds herself torn between the affections of two very competitive brothers, and neither Gaara nor Kankuro is willing to give up without a fight. GaaSaku
1. Chapter 1

Kishimoto owns _Naruto_.

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

Gaara leaned back in his chair and sighed, resisting the urge to stretch his legs. He eyed the paperwork still stacked on his desk contemptuously. He got _so tired_ of all the paperwork, the signatures, the meetings, sometimes. This week was especially taxing, since the chunin exams were coming up and they were being held in Sunagakure.

Ever since the relationship between Konoha and Suna had solidified nearly twelve years ago, after Orochimaru's attack on both their villages and _his_ first chunin exam, the cities had taken turns hosting the trial, the first of the year in Konoha, the second in his own. It was a true show of friendship and trust, unlike the old days of the exam when it was held only for the purpose of avoiding war.

Normally Gaara looked at the chunin exams with only mild interest, curious which village, if any, would produce the winners and the stronger ninjas. Of course, the arrival of the exams always meant more work, more sleepless nights, travel and meetings and playing dignitary, and he was usually so exhausted that he could hardly keep from collapsing by the end of it. He never did, of course; under the watchful eyes of his siblings and council he maintained a cool demeanor, an indifferent façade, until he was finally able to relax in the privacy of his bedroom.

This time, however, he anticipated the chunin exams with an excitement he hadn't felt in years. He was eager to get the paperwork out of the way, knowing if he didn't finish up by evening he would regret it sorely; he would be forced to pull an all-nighter if he didn't.

The Hokage was expected to arrive the next morning, along with a small entourage of ninjas that would help prepare for the upcoming exam. The ninjas actually participating in the test wouldn't arrive until the end of the week, two days before the start of the exam. Fully aware of the attention and time playing host for a week would require, Gaara wanted to get all the details out of the way before the arrival of his friends.

He stared down at the pile of papers, willing himself to pick up the pen and finish signing so he could read through the binder of exam participants before dinner. Staring at the young faces of genin surrounded by stats and scores and predictions, Gaara's memory was forced back to a time he loathed remembering. He could picture his _own_ statistics profile, a question mark next to his abilities (people weren't supposed to know he was a jinchuriki), a note about his unpredictability and penchant for violence underlined in red so the proctors were sure not to miss it.

He marveled that that same boy—the short, volatile redhead—was the same man sitting at the desk. Back then, he had never imagined what it could be like to have friends, to have peace in his heart, to look with a love that he hadn't known existed on the people of his village, and on those who had taught him there was a better way.

He had spent more than a decade of his life in blackness, without anyone to lean on and turn to, and now, he thought wryly, he had spent more than a decade in light, on the complete opposite of the spectrum, with more people than he could count who cared about him. He had one person in particular to thank for the development, and admittedly had never been more happy to have his ass handed to him in a fight in order to achieve the current results.

Gaara smiled, the memory tugging the corners of his lips into a grin (he could look back on that fight with fondness, though at the time it had hurt like hell), and he lowered his head in case anyone walked into the office. He was often pleased, but he rarely let others see his feelings, save for those occasions where Kankuro managed to elicit a response from him (good and bad).

Gaara sighed again, finally picking up his pen and signing the documents that would finalize the preparations for the test. He was scanning them now, not giving them his full attention, scrawling his signature lazily at the bottom of the page. He hoped he wasn't approving anything too ridiculous.

Half an hour later, after he was certain his hand had permanently cramped into the utensil, a soft knock sounded at his door. He grunted approval for entry and his assistant stuck his head inside.

"Kazekage-sama. The Hokage is here."

Gaara looked up sharply, almost letting a grimace of displeasure pass over his face before he tempered it into its usual schooled, nonchalant expression. They were too _early_.

"Send them in, I suppose, Taki-san."

"Yes, Kazekage-sama."

Taki shut the door and Gaara finally did scowl down at his papers. It seemed like the stack had gotten no smaller, and now he would have to spend a sleepless night finishing everything up. While he was no stranger to sleepless nights, he had gotten awfully possessive of that sweet, empty feeling he could indulge in _every single night_ now that Shukaku was gone and his head was free of the demon. He hated to give up sleep for any reason, having had to purposefully deprive himself of it for so many years. He supposed it couldn't be helped. It was _just like_ the Hokage to show up unannounced before the expected arrival time.

Damn it.

Gaara set the stack of papers aside, closed the binder, and laid it atop them. He capped his pen, stuck it in the top drawer of his desk, and folded his hands in front of him. He waited. And waited. And waited.

Just as he was preparing to grab the paperwork and start signing until they finally came in, rudeness be damned, the door flew open as a startled Taki uttered a loud protest ("Well, _really_!") and was waved aside by the Hokage, who was followed by a group of ninja that were all more or less well-known to him. Into his office came Rock Lee, the taijutsu expert, in his trademark green jumpsuit, along with his long-time teammate Hyuuga Neji, chief medic nin Haruno Sakura, and her fellow medic Yamanaka Ino. He also vaguely recognized a young Sarutobi man, who he had heard was appointed as the Hokage's new apprentice, standing next to the Hokage.

He frowned, surveying the group. Someone was missing.

The Hokage bowed low, over-exaggerated, jacket billowing.

"Kazekage-sama."

Gaara scowled, not caring how bad it looked. He inclined his head, annoyed at the overt display of respect that he absolutely did not deserve or expect from someone equal to his station.

"Hokage-sama."

The Hokage looked up and grinned, smile reaching ear to ear.

"Come on, Gaara. Don't look at me like that. It's been _months_. I know you're happy to see me."

A blond eyebrow cocked in expectation. And Gaara couldn't help himself. He grinned back.

"Naruto, you're such a bastard."

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><p>The peals of laughter in the Kazekage's office died down as Naruto finished telling another story from the three-day trip to Suna. Lee had fallen into such a deep sleep after overexerting himself on their first leg of the trip (he had insisted on traveling the entire journey by walking on his hands, to reach new heights of strength and glorify the springtime of youth) that some prankster (and Gaara had a shrewd idea of <em>who<em>) had managed to move the young shinobi, sleeping bag and all, to the top of the tallest pine, nearly a mile from their campsite, after all the others had fallen asleep.

For his part, Lee only fell _halfway_ down the tree before catching himself, still asleep, on a wayward branch.

"But Naruto," Neji began, still smirking a bit, "you never _did_ tell us how you managed to pull it off. Even if Lee was asleep, he would have woken up after being carried _half a mile_. Even _he's _not that terrible of a ninja."

"Hey!" Lee protested, his smile quickly disappearing. "You know that I—"

Naruto cut him off, still grinning. "Now, Neji. I _never said_ it was me." He rocked back on his heels, hands crossed over his head.

Neji and Sakura gave him deadpan looks as Ino and Konohamaru's (_that_ was the Sarutobi's name) mouths opened in incredulity.

"Please. Of _course_ it was you!" Ino said. "Who _else_ would it have been?"

Everyone looked at Naruto expectantly, but he simply kept smiling at all of them.

"Well?" Gaara prompted. Naruto straightened.

"Okay, fine, it was me," he conceded smugly. "But I can't tell you how I did it yet."

"Why not?" Sakura grilled, her mouth pursing in distaste. "What's the big secret that you can't tell _us_." She spread her hands wide, indicating the room. Naruto smiled more widely.

"I'm not sure I have it completely worked out yet. Moving Lee was just a test. But I _will_ tell you something interesting."

The Konoha shinobi leaned closer to him, curious. Gaara tried not to look too interested. His sand was sneaky, but not _that_ sneaky.

"The jutsu belonged to my dad." Eyes widened.

"You don't mean you figured out the hir—" Neji began.

"Don't say it!" Naruto all but shrieked. "I'm not sure I've got it quite yet, so nobody go getting their hopes up." He was grinning all the same.

A sense of awe settled over the room. Neji didn't have to say the name of the jutsu for everyone to know that he was talking about the Yondaime Hokage's famous teleportation technique. No one before or since Namikaze Minato had discovered how the trick worked. If Naruto had unlocked the secret to the jutsu, that not only put Konoha at a huge advantage tactically, it also pretty much confirmed without a shadow of a doubt that Naruto was the best Hokage since his father had served.

Naruto had come a long way from the orange jumpsuit-wearing youth he had been, and it was moments like this that made them all realize just how impressive their new Hokage really was.

Kankuro found them all standing there, smiling stupidly at each other as the idea of someone teaching themselves the famed hiraishin sunk in.

Kankuro's gaze whipped back and forth between Gaara and Naruto, obviously confused as to why two kages were looking at each other grinning like idiots.

"Something you need to share with the class?" he asked, a smile tugging at his lips.

Gaara quickly smoothed his face into nonchalance. He opened his mouth to ask what had taken his brother so long (he had summoned him a good fifteen minutes ago), but was cut off with raucous cries of "_Kankuro!_" from Sakura and Naruto.

Gaara watched their reunion in fascination and displeasure, finally interrupting his brother's hug with the medic, which was lingering just a little long for comfort. Kankuro had no business holding the petite kunoichi so tightly, in his (not-so) humble opinion.

Just as Kankuro's hand drifted lower on her backside, he yanked his shoulder away from her tiny form. The puppet master stumbled and shot him a dirty look, which Gaara ignored.

"Naruto," Gaara began, all seriousness. Anything to distract Kankuro. "I wanted to ask you something earlier. Shikamaru isn't here. I was looking forward to seeing him." Gaara him a pointed stare, and Naruto smiled knowingly.

"You were just hoping he'd bring Temari along and you'd get to meet your new nephew," Naruto smirked, but Gaara wouldn't take the bait. He simply stared, silent, until Naruto let out a long-suffering sigh.

"Oh, all right, fine," Naruto conceded, grumbling something that sounded an awful lot like "fuckin' sourpuss" under his breath. Kankuro smirked at this and Gaara scowled at him.

Naruto continued, "He's coming at the end of the week. All three of his students are taking the exam, and he wanted to finish out their training before heading off. They'll _all_ be here in a few days."

Gaara exhaled a barely-recognizable sigh of relief; he had hoped he would get to see his sister. Being Kazekage, it was difficult to find time to visit anyone for anything other than political reasons, and it had been almost a year since he'd seen Temari. She had given birth to her first child two months ago, a healthy boy named Eiji.

When Temari had announced she was getting married to Nara Shikamaru _and_ moving to Konoha, Gaara had not taken it well. It was a difficult decision for her, to leave her city and her brothers to raise a family with the man she loved, but Gaara had understood her desire for companionship. She had been spending her time split between the two cities as it was, acting as emissary for Suna, and he knew it wouldn't be long before she was forced to commit to one or the other.

But it was hard for Gaara, who had come to rely on her expertise, her social skills, her political maneuvering to help him run the village. She had been sorely missed at first, but over time Kankuro had managed to fill her role, and anything he was incapable of doing was passed on and split up between council members and political aides. Gaara looked forward to seeing her and, he supposed, his nephew, though he had no idea what to do with an infant.

"Speaking of the exams, Naruto, perhaps we should discuss the reason you actually came. But everyone doesn't need to be here for that, and you should settle in before we meet. Kankuro will show you all to your rooms."

Naruto grimaced at this, his mouth turning down and his eyes squeezed into little slits. "Aw, come on, Gaara, we have plenty of time to meet tomorrow. We're gonna go out tonight and _you're _coming with us."

Gaara scowled in distaste as his brother and the Konoha shinobi perked up at this news, muttering and smiling at their good fortune. Gaara noticed Sakura looked just as displeased as he did at the announcement.

She spoke up, "Naruto, I'm sure the Kazekage is much too busy to spend the night with you in drunken revelry," she grumped sarcastically. "For that matter, so am I. And we're all exhausted from travel. As a medic, I can't possibly advocate consumption of alcohol in copious amounts when—"

"Aw, Sakura, take the stick out of your ass." Naruto cut her off with a good-natured grin, and her fists tightened into little balls. Gaara shot her a look of gratitude all the same.

She smiled at him, her dangerous hands relaxing (much to the relief of all present—Gaara had no desire to redecorate), and he caught himself thinking how wonderfully _pretty_ she looked when she smiled.

"You're coming," Naruto said with finality. "And _you're_ coming, too, whether you like it or not," he was looking at Gaara this time. "I'm not gonna let you two be sticks in the mud the whole time we're here. Deal with it."

Before either of them could argue, Naruto swept out of the office, cloak billowing, obviously expecting everyone to follow despite the fact that he had no idea where he was going. Kankuro glanced apprehensively at Gaara before grabbing Sakura by the arm, immediately engaging her in a lively conversation about poisons, and the rest of the leaf ninja trailed behind. Lee gave Gaara a smile and a wave, which he did not return, and then they were gone.

Gaara found himself staring at the closed door long after they left, his mind wandering to the way that his older brother had pressed his hand intimately into the small of Sakura's back and the way her entire face lit up, a pretty blush staining her cheeks, when she talked with him. Gaara wondered how he might make her look at _him_ the same way, before shaking his head forcefully, as if it would help his thoughts scatter.

The Kazekage did not think about things like women and how beautiful they looked when they smiled.

The Kazekage did _not_ think about how much he wished _he_ could be the one escorting lovely kunoichi to their rooms with his hand on the small of their backs.

The Kazekage _absolutely did not_ think about things like how soft those lips that curled into a pretty smile might be against his own, that pink hair (pink!) spilling down onto her shoulders and hiding their faces from view, her hands tangled into his own rough red locks, her breath puffing against his mouth in a way that felt absolutely delicious...

Gaara stared harder at the doorknob, willing his errant thoughts away. Instead his traitorous brain conjured the slightly more incriminating image of her chest and legs pressed intimately against his own, her foot stroking his calf in a way that was...

Gaara could see that this might become a problem.

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><p>Sakura smiled up at Kankuro, only half-listening as he prattled on about a new poison he had developed that he wanted her to take a look at and possibly develop an antidote for. He had already shown the others to their rooms, but he was taking his sweet time with her; it felt like they had already walked the entire length of the mansion twice. She was positive she recognized that potted plant in the corner.<p>

"This new poison is _really_ neat," he was saying, hands waving animatedly. "Instead of being plant or metal based, it's engineered to react specifically to a person's chakra network and chemical makeup. Much harder to remove if you don't already have an antidote prepared."

Normally she wouldn't have minded the chatter, but she was dead on her feet after their three-day journey, and from the sound of things Naruto wasn't about to let her rest for the evening just yet. She liked Kankuro's company a lot, but she could only handle so much Exuberant And Charmingly Loud Boy before she needed a break, and she'd just spend three days with _Naruto._

"And I'm thinking we should make an antidote soon. You know, just in case," he went on, "cause you never know when I might stick myself, or my dumbass assistant might stick himself, or when I might lose it and stick Gaara on purpose."

This last possibility startled her from the daydream of her comfortable bed and how many pillows it would have. "What?" she shouted.

"You have to be prepared for these things," he told her sagely.

Sakura stopped in the hallway, hands planted on her hips, mouth struggling to stay turned down into a frown, while Inner Sakura actually kind of wanted to laugh. "You would _not_ poison your own brother, who is also, if you've forgotten, the leader of your village. It just isn't done."

He looked at her doubtfully, though she could see the laughter in his eyes. "No, I suppose not," he agreed. "The temptation is unbelievable sometimes, though, let me tell you."

She hummed at this, forcing herself to keep a straight face, puckering her lips and staring at the floor so he couldn't see her face.

Sakura actually liked Gaara—it was nice to be around a man who wasn't loud and obnoxious, wasn't taking his social cues from library books, wasn't perpetually late with a penchant for porn, and who actually seemed know what he wanted. But Kankuro didn't need to know that.

"I suppose I could make you an antidote tomorrow," she told him. And then she did break into a smile. "The likelihood of you poisoning yourself is rather high."

Kankuro looked offended, despite the fact both of them knew that not only had he accidentally poisoned himself more times than they could count (Sakura had treated him _at_ _least _half those times), he would also probably poison himself on purpose to test the effects of his concoction firsthand.

Which meant she had better be damn sure the antidote worked.

"Look," he said, suddenly serious, "this poison is relatively sensitive. I've only done lab testing so far, and I'm pretty certain I've got it worked out. But to be honest, I'd like your opinion on the poison as well as the antidote. I have this idea for tying the effects of the poison to my chakra, so the chemicals react to the person's body but _I_ can control the speed the poison spreads and the level of pain they feel."

Sakura raised her eyebrows skeptically, though she was impressed with the level of thought he had put into it. Usually Kankuro's poisons were second thoughts; wham, bam, thank you ma'am inventions that were simply tools for his real babies. But this was taking it a step further.

"I know, I know what you're thinking," he whined, "but I really think this could work. The only problem I can think of is that if the poison does effectively tie to their chakra, if they run out, then the poison won't work as well. Well, that and the fact that if it's tied to my chakra, the antidote might also need to tie to my chakra, if an antidote can even be developed. Okay, and that when I test it if something goes wrong someone might die, namely me, since I test all my poisons on myself and if I'm controlling it with my chakra and it's effecting my chakra..."

He trailed off, leaving the potential consequences to hang heavily in the air. Sakura opened her mouth to speak when he suddenly started in again.

"It's just, I've been working on this idea for so long and I really, really, _really_ want it to work. I know you probably think I'm crazy for all this, but will you please help me, even if it's just to take a look? I promise I won't poison you, or make you try it, or tie it to your chakra, or anything like that. Will you help me?"

He looked at her hopefully, a pout already forming on his lips as if he expected her to say no, regardless of his pleas. She let out a huff of laughter and laid her hand gently on his arm.

"Kankuro, slow down. I'll help you," she reassured him, and he broke out into the biggest smile she had seen yet, though it was made slightly creepy by the theatrical paint highlighting his eyes and mouth.

"Really?" he asked, positively gleeful.

"Of course. I don't want you to die because I didn't help you and you went on with it anyway."

Sakura smiled as he let out a whoop. Leaning down and clasping her hands tightly in his own, he looked deeply into her eyes and for just a moment she thought he was going to kiss her.

"Sakura-chan, you are the best, most wonderful, most amazing girl in the whole world," he told her earnestly.

A blush bloomed on her cheeks and she tried not to look so pleased at his compliment.

"Oh, pshaw," she told him. "Just don't do anything until I get an antidote—a _confirmed _antidote—ready."

He nodded eagerly and let go of her hands, walking at a fast pace down the hall before stopping in front of a door that looked very much like all the other doors in the corridor. It opened with the turn of a key and he ushered her inside, hanging against the frame and peering at her as she laid her small travel pack down on the bed.

"Well, thanks for everything, but I should probably shower off all this dust and change before we go out tonight," she said, back still turned. When she didn't hear the door click shut, she turned to find him still staring at her.

Sakura looked at him expectantly but Kankuro didn't move, a glazed look cast over his eyes. Sakura frowned and moved closer to him, waving a hand in front of his face.

"Kankuro? You ok?" she asked, suddenly concerned. He jerked at the sound of her voice and she was certain his face was flushed.

He nodded quickly, but she moved closer, pressing a hand to his forehead, leaning in to check the dilation of his eyes. His eyes widened.

"You don't seem to have a fever," she said softly. "Do you think maybe you should stay home tonight?"

A magnificent blush bloomed on Kankuro's cheeks and he grunted, pushing her away with a swat of his hand. He chuckled nervously and she smiled back, uncertain.

"Are you ok?" she asked again.

"Yeah! Yeah, sorry, I'm fine. I was totally just spacing for a sec."

The blush stayed firmly present and he cursed under his breath.

"Shit. I'm fine. I'll let you get to that shower." His voice sounded a bit strangled. "I'll see you tonight, Sakura."

"Sure," she agreed. "See you tonight."

She moved to shut the door, giving him a weak smile that he didn't return, and he walked slowly backward as she slid it shut. He stood outside the door and he could hear her moving around inside the room, humming and rustling around.

He heard the shower turn on, the water sputtering a few times before coming down full force.

As soon as Kankuro heard what he was sure was the sound of fabric hitting the floor, he turned and ran down the empty hallway, a blush still settled high on his cheeks, his heart pounding in his chest.


	2. Chapter 2

Slight spoiler this installment for chapters 547-548 of the manga.

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<br>**

Gaara yawned hugely and stretched as the bright morning sun peeked through his windows, curtains parted to allow the light to stream through. He had finally gotten to bed around 4:00am, having forced himself to finish his leftover paperwork before going to sleep. That meant he had gotten—he looked at his clock and groaned—one and a half hours of sleep. His eyeballs felt like they were on fire.

He doubted any of his guests were up yet. Not only had they traveled long and hard the day before, their revelries last night had been boisterous enough (he should know, as he had been forced to participate) and gone late into the night. He expected some of them (namely Kankuro, Konohamaru, and Naruto) would be sporting massive hangovers and wouldn't make their appearances until almost noon. Gaara was sorely tempted to bury his face back into his pillows and catch a few more hours' sleep, but he knew that he would pay for his irresponsibility later if he did.

He sighed loudly, sitting up and staring at the wall opposite, his legs tangled comfortably in the linens. Blearily blinking his eyes and willing them to stay open, he crawled out of bed and shuffled to his attached bathroom (he was one of the few lucky people in Suna to even _have_ his own bathroom; with water scarce, public bathing was the norm), staggering through his morning ablutions. He exited slightly more awake and a lot more presentable.

Glancing outside, he decided a morning walk was in order before breakfast to clear his head and prepare himself for the daunting social interactions that lay ahead. He started on the empty morning streets, waving greetings to early-rising shop owners and nodding to the few citizens up and about so early.

He wound his way downtown, stopping at his favorite bakery for a breakfast pastry and coffee. He sipped his hot beverage, relishing the way the strong black liquid slipped down his throat, chewing thoughtfully on his croissant as he walked. After his friends had left his office yesterday he had been left to his own devices until after dinner. He had eaten little, his mind preoccupied not only with all the work that lay ahead of him, but inexplicably with Sakura.

He had known Sakura for a long time, practically as long as he had been friends with Naruto. He vaguely remembered almost killing her, along with the rest of her team, when he was twelve. Once in awhile, during some of his particularly awful nightmares, he would have flashes of slamming her into a tree, her limp form pinned with his sand, moaning in pain. He could also picture the Uchiha boy being thrown like a rag doll in the forest as a maniacal laughing and growling filled the air.

In the dreams, he was always a bystander, watching on the sidelines as his enemies were mercilessly attacked. He felt their fear and mirrored it, waiting for the insane monster with the disturbing laugh to turn on him as well. Inevitably, at some point in the dream, he would realize that _he_ was the one laughing before waking in a cold sweat, panting and shivering as damp sheets twisted around his limbs.

The worst dream, by far, was of the night he killed Yashamaru. It twisted at the end so that when he pulled back the would-be assassin's mask and looked into his dead uncle's eyes, he instead saw his mother, slack jawed with blood trickling out the corner of her mouth, eyes still wet at the betrayal of her monstrous son.

The first time he dreamed it, he had awoken nauseous and shaking, leaning over his bed to vomit the remains of his dinner onto the floor. Baki found him—having heard the disturbance during a night patrol of the mansion—dry heaving on the edge of his king-sized bed, tears streaming down his face. Baki assumed him sick with the flu and Gaara had never corrected him. He was sixteen.

Some nightmares were worse than others. The one with his mother was recurring, and though he knew his long-held belief that his mother had hated him with every fiber of her being was a lie (thanks to the Kabuto-reincarnation of his father), he couldn't stop them coming. He knew consciously that she had loved him, but her hatred of him had been ingrained since a young age. He couldn't stop his subconscious mind pounding the image of her dead face, so like that of his uncle's, into his dreams.

He had trained himself enough now that he was no longer physically ill at the images his nightmares produced. Many of the dreams were bloody, simply reincarnations of actual battles he had fought. Though graphically violent, those dreams bothered him far less than the occasional nightmares he had concerning his friends.

While he had killed no one in his fight with Naruto's team, the image of Sakura's prone body pinned under Shukaku's sandy hand took him hours to forget, and then it was only by force. He supposed it was because they were all close now. Suna and Konoha had been fighting side by side for years, coming to each other's aide more times than Gaara could count.

The thought of anyone trying to hurt his friends made him boil with anger, a seething fury that would creep through his blood and make him recall a time when Shukaku still inhabited his body. The knowledge that once _he _would have been the one doing the hurting, that he still would be if not for them, made his heart ache with sadness.

(Actually, he mused, he would be dead if he had never made friends with any of them, and everyone would be glad and better off for it. No one would have bothered to resurrect him after the extraction if he had been the old Gaara.)

The idea that he very well could have killed any of them back then, that he could have foolishly destroyed what he now held so dear, was what made those dreams stick in his head. It was probably what made her stick in his head, to be honest.

It also made him wonder why he _didn't_ kill her back then. Had he been drawn to her even then, had his subconscious somehow known that if he destroyed her, he would regret it? It was so unlike him, to keep his victims alive. Often, he would kill enemies so fast that his siblings barely had time to protest before the deed was done. So what was it that had stopped Gaara from doing the same to her?

He supposed he would never know, and that it didn't actually matter now at any rate. Sakura had long since forgiven any of them, aiding them in any way possible, saving lives on occasion with her marvelous medical skills (namely Kankuro), and happily befriending them all. The alliance between Suna and Konoha went far deeper than convenient political ties; the cities' leaders and shinobi were fast friends, something Gaara was beyond thankful for.

Gaara didn't really believe in karma, and he guessed that the way things turned out was simply good luck. It could have just as easily gone the other way, one wayward decision on his or Naruto's parts, or even the people before them—his siblings, his father, his mentors, Naruto's team, friends, teachers—could have drastically affected the way they both turned out.

But that was in the past and he _did _believe that that past should stay firmly in the past. There was too much evidence of shinobi who did otherwise and went bad because of it (read: Uchiha Sasuke), and Gaara wasn't about to join their ranks. It was good enough that everyone had forgiven him, and if they could move on, so could he.

Which brought him back to Sakura. She was kind enough to forgive someone like him of unspeakable acts. She was kind enough to travel days in order to save him and his brother from the Akatsuki (being assigned the task as a mission with other shinobi nothwithstanding), spend hours formulating rare antidotes for Sand, spend weeks training their medic nins. She was strong and courageous and beautiful.

When he looked at it that way, Gaara really shouldn't have been surprised to find himself attracted to her. As it was, though, he just felt confused. He had never been truly attracted to a woman before.

He had felt the usual hormonal pangs of a teenage boy, but between serving as the youngest Kazekage ever, dealing with the one-tailed beast inside his head, defeating the Akatsuki, being brought back to life, protecting his siblings and his country and Naruto, battling first with the complete inability to sleep and then learning to sleep through the nightmares, and adjusting to actually having to talk to people, the opposite sex didn't register high on his list of important things.

But yesterday had been different. Yesterday the opposite sex—or rather, one particular member of the opposite sex—had registered _very high _on his list of important things.

Gaara was fairly certain he had never had such charged thoughts about anyone, ever. Kissing was untested waters for him, and to find himself not only considering what it might feel like to press his lips against hers, but actually desiring for it to happen,took him completely by surprise.

His reaction to seeing her smile at him (at. _him._) had been intense and unfamiliar. Normal guys didn't go around imagining kissing the daylights out of girls who just smiled prettily at them, did they?

Gaara could only conclude that he had been attracted to her for awhile and had simply never known it. They spoke in passing, and he _had_ known her a long time, though he couldn't truly consider himself her close friend like Temari, Kankuro, Naruto, or any of her Konoha buddies.

They were colleagues, they respected each other, but neither had the time to pursue anything more than a mutual surface friendship based on like acquaintances.

That wasn't to say that Gaara didn't want to get to know her better. He simply didn't know how. Kankuro and Temari seemed to make friends quickly and easily, but Gaara stumbled through his interactions with others, hardly knowing what to say when in the presence of anyone other than his siblings or Baki. As a result, he usually just didn't say anything at all, resulting in his perceived unfriendly and aloof demeanor (or perhaps even not so perceived).

He had never found himself caring about this fact quite so much before.

Even his close tie with Naruto could largely be attributed to the blond, though Gaara honestly enjoyed his company and felt comfortable around him.

Maybe Naruto was the key to getting to know Sakura better. Gaara knew he had harbored a juvenile crush on her in their teens, but he was fairly certain that was long since gone. He thought he had heard Naruto was seeing another girl from Konoha, anyway. It certainly couldn't hurt to casually question Naruto on her preferences, feel the situation out through his exuberant friend.

Deciding that he would ask about Sakura at the first available opportunity, Gaara took stock of his surroundings. His musings had looped him through the entire village and he was rounding the corner that would take him back in the direction of the Kazekage Tower. He tossed the now-cold coffee in the nearest trash bin and shoved the last of the pastry into his mouth. On a last minute whim, he turned instead toward the hill that would take him to the training grounds.

Suna's training area was a series of fenced in sand dunes, each spanning several acres. The training area closest to the street contained a man-made desert oasis within, complete with palm trees and glistening watering hole. It was a wonderful place to sit and think, as long as a group of incompetent chunins weren't racing around the area trying to take each other's heads (and other body parts) off.

As Gaara neared the entrance, though, he slowed, spying someone already inside the area.

It looked as though whoever it was, was meditating instead of exercising, body relaxed into a perfect handstand on the sand near the oasis. She (it was quite obvious the person was female) was perfectly still, and as Gaara watched it became clear that the girl had not only perfect form, but admirable stamina as well. The day was warming quickly under the desert sun, and he imaged that only someone used to dry desert air and intense heat year-round could sustain such an uncomfortable position.

He watched for several more minutes, but her position remained unchanged. Just as he decided head back to the mansion as originally planned, she slowly began to lower her legs. As she did, the sun reflecting on the water caught her hair and Gaara started in surprise.

He only knew of one person in the world with hair that color.

She lowered her legs slowly to the ground, smoothly pushing them back and raising her lower body into the air to create a perfect "V" between her hands and feet. She held the new position for a few minutes and Gaara watched, mesmerized, as she drew herself down, the tops of her feet pressing into the ground with her upper body thrust into the air, arms straight.

She moved her legs up, body creating a perfect straight line, before drawing her legs in as she rested on her elbows.

Gaara was already impressed with her incredible flexibility, even for a shinobi, when she slowly arched her body up, lifting her legs and supporting herself with her forearms. As her legs curled up and around so that the tips of her toes almost touched the ground in front of her, Gaara felt his breath hitch in his throat.

Her stomach was bared and her pale skin shone in the morning sun, her small, lithe body displayed to perfection. Gaara felt a little bit like he was intruding on something private, but he couldn't tear his eyes away from the enticing scene in front of him long enough to convince himself to leave.

She bent and stretched, her toes finally touching the ground as she rounded into a deep back bend. He couldn't believe there were people who could actually twist their bodies in such a way.

Normally, seeing someone bent like a pretzel might have alarmed him, but all he could register at the moment was the way her calves looked in that position, muscles pulled tight and hard before tapering into a thin, delicate ankle.

He focused on her stomach next. Her shirt had ridden up, exposing the lines of her belly, toned from years of training, yet somehow undeniably, deliciously feminine. He could see the small dip of her belly button even from the fence, and the way her arched back highlighted her small waist and pushed up pert breasts made a strangled groan twist from his low in his throat.

His eyes scanned to her neck, long and lean, leading to a face with a small chin, high cheekbones, and a wide forehead. Her startling green eyes were closed at the moment, and his gaze drifted down to full lips, which he suddenly wanted to run over and capture in his own.

Gaara imagined running his tongue over her throat, catching the sweat that was sure to be running down her neck, pressing sweet kisses up to her jaw line before finally reaching those perfect, delicious lips and covering them with his.

Heaven help him, he was unbelievably turned on.

He watched as she skillfully pulled out the bend, standing and spreading her legs, stretching low between them. Sakura stood straight then, lifting her arms high over her head, finishing her exercise.

As she bent over to roll up a mat she had been using, Gaara began to panic. He couldn't be caught gawking at her like a perverted teenager! He was the _kazekage_. He contemplated simply darting away in a flurry of sand, but she stood up suddenly and spotted him.

Gaara stood rooted to spot, unsure of how to explain his presence, extremely uncomfortable with the situation. He berated himself inwardly, scolding his wayward mind for being unable to _get a grip_ and get out before things got so out of hand. He was still trying to come up with a reasonable excuse when she waved at him, fumbling clumsily with her mat, and then held up a finger at him, the universal sign for "one minute."

Gaara watched, intriged, as she bent down quickly to tug on her sandals, not bothering to push her heels into the backs before running awkwardly over to him. Gaara felt the breath he had been holding in expel with a whoosh as she got close enough that he could see she was smiling.

"Kazekage-sama!" she exclaimed when she approached the fence. "What brings you here so early in the morning? Were you waiting for this field to train?"

Gaara shook his head no, still unsure whether he could trust his voice, and realized belatedly that training was the _perfect_ excuse for being at the _training grounds_. He could have smacked himself.

She looked confused, so he decided he had better take matters into his own hands and actually steer the conversation into safer territory before he made a big mess out of something that had to potential to actually be a good thing.

"I stopped by on my walk," he told her truthfully. "I noticed you meditating and was curious. I've never met a shinobi who trained that way before."

"Oh!" she exclaimed, surprised, "a lot of us in Konoha train that way. It's called yoga. It's not really meditating, though you can mediate while you do it. It's a method that strengthens your body and mind, plus it improves flexibility," she told him.

"Hn." Gaara thought it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain that the moves she had just pulled improved flexibility. She had _bent her body in half_.

Undeterred by his lack of response, Sakura pressed on.

"Of course, it takes years of practice to be able to hold some of those positions I was doing. But I find that yoga first thing in the morning really clears my mind and prepares me for the day. This desert air certainly does make it more difficult, though! Normally I try to go for at least two hours, but I could only manage about 45 minutes this morning."

Sakura nearly laughed at the expression of wonder on his face.

"You do that for two hours?"

"Well, not just those moves. I have a whole set that I follow. You just caught the tail end."

When his surprise didn't seem to diminish, she added, "Besides, an hour and half is nothing compared to the way Gai-sensei and Lee-kun train."

Gaara nodded, but privately, he was just as impressed with her; he had heard plenty of stories about Gai and Lee's training regimen and didn't think crazy was a good bar for everyone else to set their standards by.

"What did you think, Kazekage-sama?" she asked him.

What did he think? What did he think about what? Surely not what did he think about her little performance back there?

"Huh?" he responded eloquently, his voice coming out more like a strangled whine.

"What did you think of the yoga?" she repeated patiently.

Gaara wracked his brain. What did he think? He thought she was the most fucking beautiful thing he had ever seen, that's what he thought! But since he couldn't very well say what was actually on his mind, he responded instead to something that had been bothering him.

"Gaara."

"What?" she asked, her pretty green eyes blinking up at him.

"Call me Gaara."

"Oh," she said quietly, suddenly shy. "Alright... Gaara." She smiled at him, brilliant, and he felt like his heart might burst in two.

"I never really thought about it before," she confessed sheepishly. "I mean, I guess I never called my shishou or Naruto Hokage-sama, but it always seemed more appropriate to address the heads of other villages by their proper titles. And I know Lee and Naruto don't use your title, but I guess I just never thought that the invitation would apply to me. So thanks, that's really nice of you!"

Gaara nodded at her, and she continued to babble on, chattering about their trip and the differences in Konoha and Suna weather, restaurants and dinner from the night before, their night out, her friends. She reminded him of a buzzing bee flitting from topic to topic like flowers, happy and content.

He let himself bask in the sound of her voice, relieved to have escaped her question for the time being. As they rounded the corner to the mansion, she told him she had an appointment at the greenhouse and took her leave of him, giving him one last smile and a jaunty wave before running down the path toward the hospital and attached garden.

Gaara couldn't help but stare after her as she ran away, his stomach clenching unfamiliarly, making his heart pound and his head feel light. He shook himself to clear the feeling before turning into the cool halls of the Kazekage Tower, his thoughts a jumbled mess.

He knew he should be focusing on his tasks for the day, preparing to debrief Naruto on the plans for the exams, check on the delegates in charge of test preparation, make sure his teachers were prepared, and a whole host of other activities that needed to be done before next week.

But all Gaara could think of was how cute Sakura had looked in those tiny shorts and tank top, her face flushed from heat and exertion, her smile as bright as the Suna sun, and how unbelievably, unabashedly _jealous_ he was of whoever it was she was going to meet.


	3. Chapter 3

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

Sakura paced back and forth in the greenhouse, glancing impatiently out the window, muttering viciously. She swore under her breath before perching on the small wooden chair near the stainless steel table in the middle of the room. She managed to stay seated for at least thirty seconds, trying unsuccessfully to still her bouncing limbs, before she shot back up and began to pace the room again, much to the chagrin of the other scientists making use of the facility.

As she glared out the window, a dark frown marring her features, one brave soul decided it was time to throw caution to the wind and say something to the girl.

"Uh, please, Sakura-senpai," the shinobi began, nervously fiddling with the zipper on his standard-issue vest. "Please come over and sit down. You're welcome to experiment with some of the herbs while you wait for Kankuro-sama to arrive."

The glare she narrowed in his direction made the young man gulp visibly, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"I don't need to _experiment _with Sand herbs," she spat. "You don't have anything here we don't have in Konoha, where grass actually deigns to grow _without_ persuasion."

"W-well then," he stammered on, his friends marveling at his bravery, "could you perhaps show _us _somenew antidotes? You're so much more skilled at it than we are, and—"

_"Of course I'm more skilled at it than you," _she ground out, unimpressed with the appeal to her intelligence. "But you'll never get better at it if I'm always showing you how to do it."

Sakura huffed and turned her head away in indignation, continuing to pace the stone floor with a vengeance.

_"S-s-sakura-senpai!"_ the poor man practically shouted, and she snapped her head back to him, eyes shooting daggers.

"_What_?" she snapped, fully prepared to comply with his obvious death wish and put him out of his misery. He trudged on anyway, and she was almost tempted to applaud his attempt at bravery.

"I'm... I'm _sorry_, Sakura-senpai," he practically wailed, shooting a look to his friends for back-up. They ignored him, studiously looking any direction but his. He gulped, steeling himself to speak his piece anyway.

"I'm sorry, Sakura-senpai," he began again with slightly more conviction. "But if you can't sit still and you're not going to work, I have to ask you to leave. Your pacing is distracting _our_ work, and unless you're prepared to wait patiently for Kankuro-sama, you simply _can't_... stay..." his voice trailed off into almost a whisper at the expression on her face. The other medics finally looked up, not wanting to miss the show.

The air practically crackled with tension as she rounded on the young shinobi. He shrunk back, suddenly regretting very much his urge to reprimand the senior medic.

"What's your name?" she asked him in a deadly whisper. Fear and sweat were radiating off him in waves, and she wanted to smack him for his inability to keep it together.

"N-n-n-n-n," he stuttered, and Sakura leveled her eyes. He swallowed hard and began again. "Nobu, Sakura-senpai."

"Well, Nobu-_san_," she said, voice low, "I've been waiting for _Kankuro_-_sama_ for the past _four_ _hours._" She said his name like it was a nasty disease she had been unable to find a cure for. Nobu trembled a bit and wrung his hands nervously.

"Four. Hours. Nobu-san. And I can safely say that I was patient for at least two of those four hours. Do you know why I'm here waiting for Kankuro-_sama_ in the first place, Nobu-san?"

Nobu frantically shook his head no, quaking on the spot, waiting for her famous temper to explode and shower him in sparks of anger and vitriol. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose. The poor kid was going to drop into a dead faint if she didn't get it together. After all, it wasn't his fault Kankuro was a moron. She sighed loudly.

"I'm here to help him make an antidote," she conceded. "He was going to show me the components of a new poison he's developed and I can't get started without him. He's the one who practically begged me to be here right away so we could get started first thing, but now it's almost lunch and I've barely had anything to eat and I'm _starving_," she scowled, making the other medics jump. She made a pounding motion with her fist and they all took several steps back, Nobu scrambling to hide behind his friends.

"And when I finally find that no-good, hung over piece of shit, he's going to know _exactly_ how thrilled I am with all this," she growled menacingly, her anger practically igniting the air around her.

The other shinobi sucked in a quick breath, hoping for Kankuro's sake that he both had a ready excuse and knew how to take a punch.

* * *

><p>Naruto stumbled into the mess hall with a massive case of bedhead, his eyes still blurry with sleep and his head throbbing with every step he took. He had really tied one on last night, and he knew he was going to be paying for it all day. Gaara hadn't been easy to put off meeting the night before, the excuse of travel and catching up after a long absence falling on deaf ears. Trying to get out of meeting today because of a hangover was practically suicide.<p>

He supposed he should take a leaf out of Gaara's book and shoulder some responsibility, but paperwork was so boring and that's what assistants were invented for.

Reasoning that food or at least caffeine would ease the pounding in his skull, he filled a mug with the blackest coffee he could find, and plunked down in the nearest chair, willing some empathetic soul to wander by and offer to grab the poor sick Hokage some lunch. He stared dolefully into his cup, wondering if it would be easier and less painful to just put a kunai through his brain.

The sound of an earnest voice followed by tinkling laughter made him push his head into his hands, groaning at the unwelcome noise. Some people had no respect for their ailing leader. Minutes later, he felt several bodies sit down next to him and Naruto turned to look into the stoic gray eyes of Huuyga Neji.

"Hokage-sama," Neji greeted formally. Naruto groaned.

"Ahhh, Naruto-kun! I see you're still recovering from last night!" Lee's enthusiasm was neither helpful nor appreciated. He buried his head back into his arms.

"Ah, leave him alone, Lee," Sakura intoned. "He'll perk up on his own in a bit, and if not, it serves him right for acting like an idiot last night. I warned you not to be so reckless, Naruto."

She sounded pretty smug, Naruto thought, for someone known far and wide to be one of the loudest, most annoying drunks in Konoha and _the_ _worst_ crank when nursing a hangover. He turned to grimace at her, but it turned into another moan as his twisting facial muscles sent a pang through his head.

Sakura gave him a look that plainly said "I told you so" and began chatting quietly with the boys as they ate their lunch. After several minutes of resting his head on the table, Naruto sat up at the smell of something delicious. He was just turning to find the source of the perfume before Gaara sat next to him, sliding a steaming bowl of fresh ramen under his nose.

Gaara looked at him but said nothing, breaking his cheap wooden chopsticks and turning to his own meal of grilled fish and steamed rice. Naruto grinned widely before breaking his own chopsticks and taking a long, loud slurp of the noodles.

"You know me so well," he smirked, taking another big bite. The others, who had already finished their meals, watched in rapt fascination as Naruto polished off the entire bowl in three minutes flat. Sakura looked a bit green as he patted his stomach contentedly and sat back, his eyes bright again.

"Uzumaki Naruto's number one hangover cure! Ramen," he told them piously, indicating the empty bowl. Lee smiled widely.

"That's so wise, Naruto-kun! I will keep that in mind for when I develop a hangover. I have been told by Gai-sensei not to drink, but in the event that I do have even a little, its effects produce the most unpleasant headaches. This cure will surely be useful knowledge to retain!"

Neji and Sakura rolled their eyes.

"I wouldn't put too much stock into it, Lee," Sakura told him. "Naruto thinks ramen is the number one cure for everything."

* * *

><p>Gaara sat back contentedly as his Konoha compatriots chatted after a leisurely lunch. He felt absolutely no compunction to join the conversation, but he enjoyed listening to them talk all the same. It was nice to spend time with people who knew him well enough to expect nothing from him other than what he could give. Usually, that meant quiet companionship.<p>

"Naruto-kun," Lee was saying, "remind me again which genin teams are coming for the exams?"

Naruto pursed his lips in thought. "Let's see... There's Sasuke's team, of course, with Nami, Yuhei, and Shin; Shika's team, Hina-chan's team, and uh... I _swear_ there's one more..." he trailed off.

"_Really_, Naruto," Sakura scolded. "You're the damn _Hokage_. You're supposed to know which teams are trying to get chunin rank."

"I do freakin' know, I just forgot for a minute! I can't think with this damn headache is all!"

"And whose fault is that, huh? _Whose_?"

Naruto scowled at her, but refrained from commenting further. Gaara thought that maybe he should stick up for his friend, but he was too busy staring at the way Sakura's lips looked when she pouted like that to give it more than a cursory thought.

And, well, he _had_ drunk way too much.

"I'm pretty sure it's Udon-san's team," Neji supplied, and Naruto snapped his fingers and pointed at Neji in recognition.

"That's it! Udon."

Gaara looked a bit startled. "You really know someone named Udon?" he asked.

When Sakura giggled adorably and hid her smile behind her hand, Gaara had to stop himself from forcibly removing it so he could keep staring at her mouth. He resolved to try saying more amusing things (though he really had no idea what was so funny) to get her to laugh again.

"Kazekage-sama, how many sand teams are taking the exam?" Neji asked him.

"Three. One team of younger genin and two older teams. I expect at least the older shinobi to pass, but it really depends on the competition from other villages. Speaking of which..." he turned to Naruto, who suddenly looked wary, as if he knew what was coming.

"Naruto, you and I have to meet this afternoon concerning the teams from the other villages and some logistics for the test."

Naruto's frown turned into a full out grimace.

" But Gaaaaa-rraaaa," he whined, "I have a haaannggooovveeerr—"

"I thought the ramen cured it," Gaara deadpanned.

"But I—"

"Naruto!" Sakura growled at him. "I have _not _had a great morning thus far, and your bitching is not making it better! Suck it up and do your duty! You wanted to be Hokage, here you go. I've told you more times than I can count what having the title really means. Paperwork and boring meetings with dignitaries—no offense Gaara."

"None taken," he assured her.

"All right, all right already, I _know_," Naruto whined. "Let's just go get it over with."

Gaara stood, fully prepared to drag Naruto back to his office by force if necessary, when Sakura stopped him with a light touch on his arm. He paused, awkwardly caught halfway between sitting and standing, unsure of which direction to go. He glanced uncomfortably at the rest of the table, and Sakura still didn't move her hand. He felt a traitorous flush rise on his cheeks and he quickly sat back down and pulled his hand away before anyone noticed.

"I'm sorry Gaara-kun. Before you go, I wanted to ask you about earlier."

Gaara felt that telltale blush begin to rise again and fought it down, maintaining his usual perfectly stoic disposition. Naruto and Lee looked curiously between them.

"Earlier?" Naruto asked.

When it became clear that Gaara was not going to explain, Sakura said, "This morning Gaara caught the tail end of my yoga routine. We were talking about it afterward, but I had to go before he could tell me what he thought of it."

Inwardly panicking a bit, because Gaara _really_ didn't want anyone else to know what he thought about her yoga routine, Gaara asked, "Oh, yes, you had a meeting this morning. How did that go?"

Sakura's brow turned into a frown at his question and she glowered at him. Taken aback, Naruto and Gaara leaned further away from her end of the table.

"I _don't_ want to _talk_ about it," she growled.

Before Gaara could apologize for so obviously upsetting her, she mumbled, "That damned Kankuro. Just _wait _until he gets a piece of my mind. Four hours... four _fucking_ hours... NARUTO," she snapped suddenly. He gulped.

"If you _ever_ make me wait _four hours_ for you because you can't manage to get your lazy ass out of bed because of a damned _hangover_, I'll _kill _you," Sakura threatened.

Naruto nodded quickly in agreement, while Gaara considered her complaint. Clearly she had been intending to meet with his _brother_ this morning and had been stood up. He made a mental note to both ask Kankuro his intentions with her (surreptitiously, so it didn't seem as though _he_ had intentions) and to never stand Sakura up, under pain of death.

"Anyway," Sakura continued, "you seemed interested in my routine, so I was thinking I could show you some stuff."

"Stuff?" He asked faintly.

"Sure! That way, if you want, you can adapt the routine for Suna, show your instructors and jonins, and they can pass the information along."

He was silent for a long moment and Sakura began to look unsure of herself.

"Of course, you don't have to. It was just a suggestion and I—"

"No!" he said quickly, and perhaps a bit too loudly. When she looked startled he said, "No, it's ok. I'd… I'd like that."

She brightened considerably and Gaara felt himself lightening as well at her smile.

"Great!" she enthused. "Tomorrow morning then. I start at 6:00. It's a date!"

If Gaara's face did not permanently resemble a tomato by the end of her visit, he would be eternally grateful to whatever god happened to be listening.

"Hn." He turned to the Hokage, who had remained mercifully silent throughout the conversation. "Shall we?"

Naruto stifled a sigh and stood up, grabbing his empty ramen bowl and stacking it on Gaara's plate.

"Let's just get this over with," he grumbled.

"Remember Naruto," Sakura scolded as they turned to go. "This is what the Hokage _does_. No complaining!"

"Yeah, yeah, I heard ya the first time, _mother_," he retorted, not bothering to turn around.

Gaara sent her an apologetic smile, which she returned, and he felt himself brighten and blush again. Cursing the completely inopportune timing for his hormones to make themselves present (_really… the chunin exams?_), he stiffened as Naruto turned to beckon him along.

Exhaling the breath he had been holding when Naruto paid no attention whatsoever to his strange behavior, he decided he would be eternally grateful to whatever god was listening that his best friend also happened to be the densest guy on the planet.

* * *

><p>Sakura stalked the halls of the Kazekage Tower like a whirlwind, her rage trailing behind her in a stream of muttered curses and angry sighs. After asking directions from a wary chunin because she was <em>absolutely sure<em> she had passed that same damn potted plant at least four times, she strode purposefully in the direction he pointed her, stopping in front of a large carved oak door.

Bringing back her fist to pound through it, she hesitated and let her arm hang limp. Kankuro might deserve to live without a door for a few days, but the Kazekage didn't deserve to pay for it. If she had broken a door down when she was working for Tsunade, she would have had to fork up the funds for it herself, which she also didn't particularly want to do. She raised her fist again, this time knocking with the force of a small battering ram, but with not enough strength to actually _break_ the door.

"Kankuro," she shouted. "You get your _lazy, drunk, good-for-nothing ASS_ out here _NOW_!"

She heard grumbling and groaning outside the door and she knocked again, harder this time, and she could see the molding above the frame shake. Undeterred, she screamed again for him to get out of bed and confront her, the dirty, rotten, _un_punctual bastard.

Sakura had expected to see Kankuro at lunch, slinking into the cafeteria remorsefully and begging her to forgive him for his thoughtlessness. When he had failed to show, she decided it was time to take matters into her own, much more capable hands.

"KANKURO!"

More groaning, and then shuffling, and then the door opening to a bleary-eyed beast man. With hair out to there, dark circles under his eyes, bare feet, and nothing on but a rather festively-patterned pair of boxer shorts, Kankuro looked every bit like he had spent the night drinking and woken up with a killer hangover. Or possibly like he had done battle with a malcontent rhinoceros. Sakura wondered briefly whether he always looked this bad after he drank, and if so, why he continued to torture himself.

"_What_," he croaked, looking like he might fall over at the drop of a hat.

Sakura felt her heart melt a little. She tried vainly to push the feeling aside, desperately wanting to retain her anger and give him a piece of her mind, but the medic in her staunchly refused. This man needed her, and regardless that it was his own fault that he looked and probably felt like shit, Sakura felt it was her duty to help him feel better.

_Then_ she could kill him.

"Oh, Kankuro," she sighed, reaching up to loop his arm over her shoulders and help him to the bed. He had vomited into his trash can during the night, obviously unable to make it to the bathroom, so she quickly tied the bag and set it outside the door before moving to his window and cracking it to let out the stale air. She didn't particularly want to let the sand in and make more work for whoever had the pleasure of cleaning his room, but the smell was worse than the wind.

She laid him down and tucked him in, running a cloth from the bathroom under water to press to his sweat-dampened skin. Sakura supposed she should be doing something to prepare for the arrival of her teammates and debrief the other medics of the plan for the exam, but she had already cleared the day for Kankuro's antidote creation and testing, so she supposed she could spend it playing nurse.

She sat with him, watching as the sun peaked in the sky and slowly began its downward descent. She kept the cool cloth pressed to his head, wringing it out every so often and wiping his body of all traces of sweat. When he woke up and needed to be sick again, she helped him stumble into the bathroom and soothingly patted his back as he retched into the toilet bowl.

He seemed a bit better after that, so she prepared his toothbrush and a glass of water, located two pain pills for the massive headache he was undoubtedly sporting, and waited in the bedroom for him to make himself presentable. He plodded out in a bathrobe and sat next to her on the edge of the bed. They were silent for several minutes before he spoke.

"I'm really sorry," he ground out, his voice sounding hoarse from sleep and sickness.

"So am I," she replied, not looking into his eyes.

"Sakura," he pleaded. "Please look at me."

She turned her head away in a silent refusal. He leaned closer to her then, one hand fisted in the bedding, the other hovering above her shoulder.

"_Please._"

Sakura looked up at him and he placed the hand on her arm, turning her into him before pulling her into a breathless hug. She gasped and he put his other arm around her shoulders, holding her tightly. She sat there, her arms pinned between them, unable to reciprocate and unsure if she would even if she could.

"I am _so sorry_," he said again, his voice almost sounding close to tears.

"You must think I'm just the biggest asshole on the planet, practically begging you yesterday to help me and then standing you up. I can't believe I didn't… I'll do _anything_ to make it up to you," he amended, waiting with baited breath until she sighed sweetly, leaning into his embrace.

"It _was_ pretty awful of you," she told him. "I had marched down here fit to kill, ready to yell and scream and rage until my head exploded. But then you answered that door looking like such hell that I couldn't seem to find it in me anymore."

He pulled back from her warm hug, barely resisting the urge to run his hands along her back and through her hair.

"You can yell at me now," he told her earnestly, looking straight into her eyes. She laughed outright at his eagerness before patting him on the head. He winced.

"I don't think your poor brain could take me ripping into you now. You must have a doozy of a headache."

He grimaced. "Yeah. I got real shit-faced last night. Don't know what I was thinking."

She smiled at him, and he felt his stomach do a little flutter that he was pretty sure didn't have anything to do with the hangover.

"Do you always look this bad after you drink?"

"Not _always_," he hedged. She shook her head ruefully.

"I would _kill_ myself if I looked that bad every time I woke up with a hangover. And I don't handle them all that well as it is."

"Who does?" he asked, grinning, before suddenly falling sober again.

"How long did you wait?"

"It's not important."

"It _is_," he insisted. "How long?"

She was quiet for several minutes. "Four hours," she admitted finally.

"_Fuck_," he said softly, his voice a strangled whisper. "I'm such a screw up." His hand fisted in the blanket again and his breath hitched when she placed her small hand over his own, her warm fingers wrapping around his long ones. He let himself relax in her caress, her thumb rubbing soothing circles over the side of his fist.

"Sakura?"

She turned her big green eyes up at him and he felt the flutter again.

"I really am so, _so sorry_."

"It's ok," she sighed. "I forgive you."

He leaned down for a hug again, and this time she put her arms around him. He gathered her close, tucking her small frame under his chin and resting his cheek on her soft hair.

"Thanks for taking such good care of me, Nurse Haruno."

"That's _Medic Haruno_ to you," she scolded, but she stayed in the warm circle of his arms all the same.

* * *

><p>AN: Well, I had planned a big ol' shouting match for S&K, but instead we got that sweet little ending scene. Sort of took on a mind of its own there. Sorry 'bout that.

Next episode, the rest of The Crew shows up. Temari, Shikamaru, Sasuke, and Hinata make their appearances, as well as a cameo by the lovely Eiji. You get to look forward to SandSib + infant action. Plus, I'm sure Gaara will be thrilled with Sasuke's level of familiarity with our favorite pink ninja.

(And to preempt any possible whining from the Sasuke h8rs, yes, he's a little bitch, but he's a _reformed _little bitch. Naruto says he can't be Hokage until he saves his best friend, so I'm taking that literally and assuming that at some point Kishi-san will have fox-boy save the rat bastard. And since we all know he's basically Kakashi sans mask, he will be the worst genin teacher known to man. /end spiel)


	4. Chapter 4

First, **_thanks _**for all the kind reviews! I really do love them.

Second, someone asked if this was GaaSaku. I was going to answer that, but I think I'll let this chapter speak for itself. :wink:

Enjoy!

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Gaara smashed his hand down on the alarm before it reached its full intensity, wide awake despite the early hour. Trying unsuccessfully to calm his frayed nerves, he brushed his teeth and washed his face before attempting to tame his mop of bright red hair. When it steadfastly refused to take up any semblance of order, even on threat of removal, he gave it up as a lost cause, cursing his father for passing along his curly hair genes.

Foregoing his usual long robes, knowing they would only get in the way, he instead donned a pair of white linen pants and shirt, hoping the ensemble would be suitable for whatever Sakura had in mind. He briefly considered taking his gourd, but decided at the last minute that it was unnecessary and would only be a nuisance. There was plenty of sand at his disposal in case of an emergency, though he was relatively sure the morning would be uneventful in terms of foreign attacks.

He rather hoped the morning would _not_ be uneventful in all areas, as he would be spending it exclusively with Sakura. He hoped this would be a chance for him to more firmly ascertain his feelings for her without outside interference. Not to mention, he was _really_ looking forward to seeing her in those tiny shorts again.

He set out for the training grounds a half hour before the appointed time, determined not to make her wait on him. With nothing better to do than pace his room until they had to meet anyway, Gaara figured he could get a light warm up in before Sakura arrived. When he got to the grounds, though, he found himself unable to concentrate on anything resembling his usual warm up routine and ended up waiting for her by the edge of the lake, his feet dangling comfortably in the warm water, which remained heated year-round from the harsh sunlight.

She showed up at five minutes after six, jogging quickly through the gate and bowing to apologize for her tardiness.

"I'm sorry I'm late!" she huffed, trying to catch her breath. She had obviously run from the mansion in the hopes that she might beat him there.

He waved his hand dismissively. "It's no problem," he assured her, pulling his feet out of the water and attempting to put his sandals back on without getting sand everywhere.

"Oh, you won't need those," she told him, and she tugged her own sandals off as well. Gaara looked down at his wet feet, then at the sand surrounding them, and shrugged, awkwardly shaking first one foot and then the other before standing. He wiggled his toes at the uncomfortable feeling of wet sand, but knew the grains would fall away when his feet dried.

Sakura was laying out two mats like the one she had been using the other day, setting them side by side and arranging them so they were even on the sand. She reached down to brush off her feet before stepping on the pink mat, inviting him onto the blue.

"I usually warm up with sun salutes," she explained, "but I'll show you all the basic moves before we do that since you probably won't be able to keep up otherwise."

"I don't know about that," he grinned. "I'm a _very _fast learner."

_He looks so nice when he smiles_, Sakura thought, smiling at his confidence.

"I'll be the judge of that," she smirked.

"Yes, Sakura-sensei!" Gaara saluted sarcastically and she burst into laughter.

He looked a bit startled, so she apologized, "Sorry! But you looked _so much_ like Lee-kun just now!" She broke down into helpless giggles again and Gaara smiled more widely, wishing he knew of something else he could say to make her laugh. She wiped at the tears of mirth pricking her eyes and tried in vain to straighten her features.

"Just get over here," she commanded, waiting until he complied to continue. When he lifted his foot to step over, she opened her mouth to stop him, but he didn't react fast enough.

"Brush your feet off—" he set his foot down and sand scattered over the mat.

"First," she finished lamely. He looked down and wriggled his toes, more grains falling from his feet and settling into the grooves of the mat. Sakura sighed.

"Come sit down here," she motioned to the edge of her mat and waited until he gingerly lowered himself, careful not to spread more grains than necessary. Sakura shook her head ruefully.

"Boy, this desert stuff really does make it more difficult. I'd have been halfway through my warm up by now at home!" Gaara began to apologize for the inconvenience, but she cut him off.

"It's ok," she grinned, "this makes it more interesting." She stepped off her mat and shook his off, sending the sand into the wind so it didn't get in their eyes. Gaara watched for a moment before trying to brush off his feet, failing miserably when he stumbled and sent his legs tumbling right back into the drifts and coating them all over again. Seeing his predicament, Sakura smiled and came over to help, carefully arranging his mat again before she did so.

"You boys are all so hopeless," she said softly, kneeling next to his feet and picking his leg up, brushing the grains from the hair on his legs before moving to the bottoms of his feet. The sensation of her touching him in such an intimate—and admittedly embarrassing—area made shivers run down his spine. His foot jerked when she hit a ticklish spot and she grinned maniacally, fingers poised menacingly over his sensitive flesh.

"Ah, so the Kazekage is ticklish, is he?" she joked, brushing the area lightly with the tip of her finger.

Gaara shivered again and it had nothing to do with ticklishness.

"You really don't have to do that, you know," he remarked dryly, but she simply smirked and held his foot more tightly when he tried to pull it away.

"Don't have to tickle you? I beg to differ," she laughed, a pretty, full-throated sound that made him want to lean into her touch and return it with his own. She ran one finger lightly, so lightly, over the bottom of his foot again, her lips parted in concentration, and the sensuality of it all threatened to overwhelm him. Gaara reached down with one hand, stilling her own, and waited until she looked into his eyes.

When she finally did look up, green eyes blinking in merriment and a pretty flush staining her cheeks from the morning heat, he stared back at her with heavy lids, gazing deeply into her eyes before flickering down to her mouth. She noticed and nervously licked her lips in such a way that he had to forcefully bite back the groan that threatened to tear from his throat.

"We should probably get started," he breathed, his face now inches from her own.

"With what?" she whispered back, holding her gaze with his.

_With what?_ Gaara thought. _What were we doing again?_

He tried to force his brain to focus, but all he could seem to register was the feel of her hand against his ankle and his hand against hers, rubbing slow, miniscule circles against her thumb.

_Get a grip! _he told himself sternly. _You have to get a grip before you do something so monumentally stupid that even being Kazekage won't fix it!_

Gaara wrenched his eyes away, blinking heavily, and the spell was broken. He stood quickly and stepped to his own mat, using his jutsu to remove all traces of the stuff before looking down at her for instruction.

She huffed a small sigh of indignation and crossed her arms, making no move to join him.

"You mean you could have done that from the start and saved us all that trouble?" she questioned crossly.

"What?" he asked, honestly having no idea what she was talking about. She gestured to his feet and he blushed, realizing belatedly that he had removed the sand without a thought, concerned only with distancing himself from her intoxicating presence. He'd been so flustered before that he'd _forgotten his own jutsu_.

_This morning cannot possibly get any more embarrassing_, he thought, inwardly grimacing.

Sakura's face flashed in recognition and she giggled, reaching out a hand for him to pull her up. He took it reluctantly, not wanting to give himself any more cause for distraction but reveling in her touch all the same. She stepped on to her mat, looking at him expectantly. He obligingly removed the sand from her area as well, letting the soft grains tickle the hairs on her arm before moving away to drop harmlessly to the ground. When he turned back, she was looking at him thoughtfully, rubbing the spot on her arm where the sand had touched. He raised his eyebrows in question and she shook her head, smiling gently.

"It's nothing. I just think it's funny how your sand attacks are so deadly, but you can be so gentle with it at the same time. I guess it's kind of like you."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," she began, still rubbing the spot he had caressed, "it's rough with a harsh exterior, but soft under the right conditions. It can be angry and unforgiving during a storm, but glistens with warmth under the sun. When honed, it's becomes sharp glass, but that glass is also capable of being molded and blown into something beautiful and strong." She looked at him pointedly.

Gaara flushed, staring at the ground. _Maybe it _can_ get more embarrassing_.

"Glass breaks," he told her flatly, refusing to meet her eyes.

"Only if it doesn't have someone to catch it when it falls," she replied softly.

They stood in silence, each lost in their own thoughts, when she suddenly clapped her hands and said, "Let's start with downward dog. It's really one of most basic and well-loved positions."

Flustered a bit at the abrupt change in subject, Gaara watched as Sakura spread her legs and bent her knees slightly, lowering her palms to the ground and thrusting her rear in the air, creating a v-shape with her body. It took all his willpower not to just stand there and stare at her ass, all thoughts of the previous conversation flying out the window.

"Try it," she invited, and he stifled a groan, feeling very uncomfortable as he mimicked her position, praying he didn't fall flat on his face and make a complete fool of himself.

* * *

><p>"Put me the hell down, you moron!" Temari shrieked as Kankuro swept her up and spun her around in a very undignified manner.<p>

When he had turned full circle, he simply stood there, holding her above his head, the muscles in his arms straining attractively as he grinned like an idiot. When it became obvious he wasn't going to comply, Temari looked to her husband for help.

"Shika! _Help_ me!"

In answer, he simply jostled the baby in his arms, a clear indication that his hands were already full. She glared, trying to swat and the still-snickering Kankuro, who easily ducked out of reach.

"Well, hand him off and _then_ help me," she commanded.

Heaving a long-suffering sigh and muttering something that sounded an awful lot like, "what a pain," he glanced at the room's only other occupant, who seemed quite horrified at the silent request.

"Just hold him for a sec," Shikamaru drawled, ignoring the dismayed look on Gaara's face as he thrust Eiji into his arms. Shikamaru shuffled over to help his wife, though Kankuro had set her down when he saw that he would soon be outnumbered. Gaara hardly paid attention as Temari berated their brother; he was too busy staring warily at the small bundle he had been given.

He held the baby away from his body in an attempt to touch as little of the boy as possible. He hardly dared breathe for fear he would somehow contaminate his small nephew. Eiji gurgled and cooed, wiggling and causing the thin blanket he was swaddled in to shift lower.

"Oh, for goodness' sake, Gaara," Temari scolded. "He's not _toxic_."

Shooting her a guilty glance, he awkwardly cuddled Eiji closer, pressing the baby against his chest without moving his hands and looking for all the world like he would rather be anywhere but there.

Watching for a few moments as Gaara struggled to still the squirming boy without actually moving him, Temari finally took pity and shifted the baby, helping Gaara hold him more comfortably by gathering Eiji into the crook of his arm.

"There you go, see?" she chided. "It's not so bad, is it?"

Gaara hoped the pointed look he gave her made perfectly clear that it _was_ so bad and completely uncomfortable and humiliating and a whole host of other emotions that the Kazekage should not have been subjected to.

He became distinctly more discomfited when she laughed gaily and left the baby with him anyway, opting instead to catch up with Kankuro. He glared openly at them until Eiji drew his attention, burbling and babbling like a brook, unaware that he happened to be in the care of one of the most dangerous shinobi on the continent. For his part, Gaara regarded the baby with a mixture of awe and apprehension, not quite sure how to approach this new enigma.

Gaara had never thought much about children; he just assumed he would never have any. He and his siblings hadn't been happy growing up, he never considered marriage, and the thought of impregnating anyone not his wife was out of the question. Children were one of the few responsibilities he'd never had to shoulder, and while he supposed in a very roundabout way he was responsible for every child in the village, he didn't consider them _his_ any more than the rest of Suna.

Shuffling uncomfortably with the happy baby in his arms, he wasn't particularly inclined to change his mind about kids. While he still yearned to be needed by someone special, he wasn't ready to be quite _so _needed. He wanted to be depended on and relied on, but he wanted to be able to return those feelings. He was quite certain that he _could not_ depend on a baby to help in a time of crisis.

Unbidden, the picture of a smiling Sakura holding a pale-haired baby popped into his mind. Flushing deeply at the thought of a woman he barely knew—certainly a woman who had no idea he was entertaining ludicrous family fantasies of her—having his child, he willed the thought away with a grimace.

_So not appropriate, Gaara_, he thought, dismayed at the direction his brain seemed to head every time he let his guard down.

_If you're not careful, this could get majorly out of hand. You've already had one too many close calls with her. She is _not_ your girlfriend. She is not your lover. She does not like you like that. Stop it._

As Gaara mentally lectured himself, Kankuro and Temari continued their discussion in low tones, shooting furtive glances his way to make sure he couldn't overhear. Seemingly preoccupied with his small bundle, Temari ventured, "He's doing alright, then?"

"Sure, he's fine. I don't know why you're always so worried about him. I can handle anything that comes up. You know he hasn't lost it in years," Kankuro assured.

"I know it. But I was right there with him for so much of that crap, and I don't know... He just seems so lonely," she finished lamely.

"He's _fine._ He's a big boy who can take care of himself."

"I know that," she spat. "But the nightmares... you never were too sensitive about that kind of stuff, idiot."

Kankuro glowered and was about to retort with a nasty invitation about just where she could stick her sensitivity, but Shikamaru interrupted with the quirk of an eyebrow.

"Look, Temari, I know you're worried, but Gaara _can_ take care of himself," he sighed, and she turned her glare on him instead.

"What would _you_ know about it?"

"Hey, I know we're not exactly close, but Gaara's a guy," he explained. "He won't take kindly to that kind of meddling, and he's not nearly as laid back as I am. Just let it be."

"But I—"

"If you want to help him, you could start by taking back our kid," he laughed, flinching when Temari raised her hand and looked like she might smack him.

"Seriously, you just need to be there to listen to him if he needs it. He'll talk if he's ready and has any problems. But I wouldn't go asking for trouble when there isn't any," Kankuro advised.

"_Ugh_. _Men_." Temari opined, making them chuckle.

"It'll be _fine_, Temari," Shikamaru insisted. "And I was totally serious, he's looking really distressed with Eiji over there, and the little guy's kinda growing on me. Maybe you could go take him back?"

"Maybe _you _should take him back," she retorted, but Kankuro beat them both to it.

"Hey Gaara," he called, "when you gonna give me a turn with my favorite nephew?"

Temari and Shikamaru rolled their eyes, but Gaara quickly handed the baby over, looking relieved. They watched for several moments as Kankuro coddled and sweet-talked Eiji, tossing the giggling boy into the air and catching him, making funny faces.

"Alright, that's enough," Temari announced after a few minutes, taking the baby from Kankuro and herding her husband to the door. "We're tired, this little guy's probably hungry, and if we leave Shika's students to their own devices for too long we might find one of the wings to the mansion missing. We'll see you guys later."

The door shut behind them and Gaara and Kankuro sat in companionable silence, Gaara going over some paperwork with Kankuro straightening the binders for the exam instructors.

"Hey, Gaara?" Kankuro asked.

"Hn?"

"You doing okay, man?"

"Hn."

"Dude, what does that even mean? Yes or no?"

Gaara quirked an eyebrow at his brother. "What do _you_ think?" His tone left no room for discussion.

"Alright, fine, I get it," Kankuro complained, gathering the binders and moving toward the door. "Just worried about you."

"Why?"

"I dunno, I'm not... whatever, forget it. Gonna go drop these off," he mumbled, closing the door behind him. Gaara stared after him for a moment before shaking his head and going back to work. They had been alone for a whole ten minutes and Gaara hadn't broached the subject of Sakura and Kankuro's intentions toward her. He felt foolish for being unable to get up the nerve to ask his brother something so stupid, especially since he knew Kankuro and Sakura were just good friends and had been for long time.

But there was a chance, one niggling little thought in the corner of his mind suggested, that there was something more than friendship between the two. Gaara knew it was an issue he should clear up before confronting his own feelings for the girl or pursuing their relationship further. But he couldn't bring himself to consider that he might have already lost before he truly understood what he had to gain, so he let it go for the time being.

* * *

><p>Naruto sighed as Hinata slid her arms around his shoulders and pressed her lips to his. When she pulled her body flush against him and ran her tongue along his bottom lip, a delicious shudder ran down his spine. He moaned into her mouth, touching the tip of his tongue to hers, heat shooting through his limbs and resting in his groin.<p>

He pulled away slightly, lips hovering just above hers, and whispered huskily, "_Damn_. You know, Konohamaru tells me I've got sexy no jutsu down to an art form. But I have to tell you, babe, you've mastered the _real_ sexy no jutsu."

She giggled and kissed him lightly. "I missed you, Naruto," she breathed against his lips.

"Well that was _some_ welcome," he grinned mischievously. "Care to continue showing me just how much you missed me in my bedroom?" He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and was about to dive in for another kiss when an irritated and totally unwanted presence made himself known, clearing his throat loudly.

"Would you mind getting a fucking room?"

Naruto glared at their intruder, hunching protectively over Hinata and narrowing his eyes over her head.

"Uh, we were about to before you so rudely interrupted us, bastard."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk. Such language. That's no way for the Hokage to talk, Naruto."

"Shut the hell up, you ungrateful dickwad," he sneered.

"Naruto!" Hinata squeaked. He looked down at her sheepishly.

"Sorry, babe."

"Look," Sasuke interrupted, "I'd love to let you two _love birds_ go screw each other's brains out, but your brats"—he looked pointedly at Hinata—"told _my _brats that some Sand guy needs us downstairs for some kind of debriefing," his lip curled, the impending meeting obviously to his distaste. "I don't think they'll accept a nooner with the Hokage as an excuse for skipping out."

Hinata blushed scarlet and mumbled something unintelligible, but Naruto squeezed her hand reassuringly and shot Sasuke another glare.

"It's ok, Hina-chan. I'll see you later tonight." He turned to Sasuke. "And if I _never _see you again, it would be too soon."

"Love you too, sunshine," he quipped, grinning over his shoulder, Hinata trailing abashedly in his wake.

* * *

><p>Gaara clenched and unclenched his fists, glaring in the general direction of the trio sitting to his right. He had been dragged out against his will again, the arrival of the Konoha instructors providing ample excuse for carousers to make the most of Suna drinking establishments.<p>

To his left, Naruto sat speaking quietly with his fiancée, whispering in her ear and making her blush bright red. Knowing it had been almost a week since Naruto had last seen her, Gaara let them have the time to themselves. He hoped her presence would temper Naruto's drinking habits if the threats from Sakura didn't do the trick.

Gaara took a sip from his beer, barely noticing that it was now lukewarm as he continued to stare at the three next to him. He had managed to snag a seat next to Sakura, but all her attention was focused on her former teammate. She giggled when he leaned close, sharing a private joke, and Gaara felt the threads of his control slip even further.

Kankuro didn't look any happier than he did, he noted, glowering menacingly at the younger shinobi and tossing back more of the dark amber liquid in his glass. Kankuro had apparently promised Sakura that he wouldn't go overboard, but in Gaara's opinion he was well on his way past buzzed and rushing headlong into smashed. Sakura didn't seem to notice; in fact, she had had quite a bit to drink herself. The Uchiha had no qualms ordering her a second and third drink after she had downed the first.

She seemed frightfully unconcerned with how closely he was sitting to her, occasionally running his hands through flyaway strands of her hair or resting his hand on her lower back.

Gaara wanted nothing more than to smash that hand to little bits. A sand coffin death would be _too good _for that hand.

He ran a hand through the tangled strands of his hair, sighing and taking another swig from the bottle, grimacing at the taste. Loud music with a low beat played as couples bounced and grinded on the floor, completely ignorant of how wanton they looked.

A woman sitting on a low-slung couch across the room tried to catch his eye, sensuously running her tongue over her lip and batting her eyelashes coyly. He ignored her, turning back to his friends. _This_ was why he avoided coming out. The noise, the women, the sheer inappropriateness of the Kazekage partaking in any of it... He might only be twenty-five, be he had responsibilities, and they didn't include rubbing against a stranger in a seedy bar.

Sasuke leaned down to whisper something in Sakura's ear and she blushed and shook her head furiously, glancing out at the dance floor. He grinned and twirled a wayward tendril of hair around his finger, responding in a low tone that Gaara couldn't hear over the music. She shook her head again and he shrugged good naturedly, grinning and sauntering over to the same woman who had propositioned Gaara.

The three watched as Sasuke pulled her up, clasping her hand and bringing her to the edge of dance floor, where she proceeded to move seductively against him while he looked bored with her attentions. Shaking his head at the absurdity, Gaara started to take another drink before he remembered it was no longer cold and pushed it away.

"Ridiculous," Kankuro was saying. "Seriously, Sakura, how do you put up with that shit?"

Sakura blushed and grinned sheepishly, "Well, he's my friend, and he's been through a lot. He's just not very... socially adept. I try to help him where I can."

"By letting him flirt openly with you?" Kankuro demanded. Sakura grimaced, but Gaara silently agreed.

"Look, he doesn't mean anything by it," she explained. "It's harmless."

"Didn't look so harmless to me," Kankuro muttered. "You shouldn't be so nice to him about it, he'll take it the wrong way."

While Gaara thought Kankuro was absolutely right, he wasn't so sure this was the best way to break it to Sakura.

She proved him right when she burst out a second later, "What would you know about it? You have no idea what he's been through! You have _no right_ to say something like that to me!"

She was shouting and quite a few of the nearby patrons were staring, some people even craning their necks to see what all the fuss was about. Kankuro tried shushing her, but that only seemed to fuel her anger.

"I will _quiet down_ when I'm good and ready, you insensitive prick! How dare you lecture me about how I treat my friends and whether or not they deserve my attention!"

She continued to rant as Kankuro cringed, sinking back into his chair and looking ready to dart to freedom at the first opportunity. Suddenly, Sasuke appeared at her side, resting his hand on her shoulder. She shut up immediately.

"Problem?" he asked, smirking at the way Kankuro hunched away from her.

"Not at all," she said airily, shooting a final glare at Kankuro before taking her seat again. Sasuke was apparently done dancing with the other girl, because he too reclaimed his seat. He slung his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close, grinning widely at Kankuro when Sakura wasn't looking.

"You little bastard," Kankuro ground out, mouth twisting into a grimace. Sasuke continued to smile back, looking like the cat that caught the canary, and Gaara found himself glowering as well.

"Keh. Gotta piss," Kankuro spat, shoving his chair back and stalking to the men's room.

"What's eating him?" Naruto asked, joining the conversation from Gaara's other side.

"Dunno," Sasuke drawled, "Must have seen somethin' he didn't like."

Gaara's face twisted into a scowl. "He's not the only one," he muttered.

He hadn't meant to speak loud enough to be overheard, but apparently tonight just wasn't his night. Sasuke smiled widely, realization dawning on his features, and Gaara cursed his rotten luck that the one person he _really _didn't want to know of his infatuation had found out due to carelessness on his own part. Naruto looked at him questioningly and Sakura asked, "Did you say something, Gaara?"

"Nothing important," he sighed. She leaned over and picked up his discarded beer.

"It's warm!" she exclaimed in surprise. "Let me get you another one."

He opened his mouth to disagree, but she turned to Sasuke suddenly, a bright smile on her face.

"Sasuke-kun, will you go get Gaara a beer and me another one of these fruity thingies?" she wheedled. Sasuke growled at the request and Gaara felt his mouth turn into a grin of its own accord. He tried to squash it down into his usual expression of disinterest, but the longer he listened to the argument, the wider it got.

"Go get it yourself!"

"Oh, come on!" she pleaded. "You're taller and can get over to the bar more easily. Pleeeaaase?" She dragged out the word obnoxiously and he huffed in annoyance before standing and making his way to the crowded bar.

"And maybe another bourbon for Kankuro!" she called. He scowled, but continued forward until they lost sight of him in the group surrounding the counter.

Gaara couldn't help but feel slightly cheered at this turn of events. Sakura might have spent the night talking with the Uchiha and letting him touch her, something Gaara longed to do himself, but it was promising that _he_ hadn't been reduced to an errand boy.

Gaara was much more animated as he joined the conversation between Sakura, Naruto, and Hinata. He couldn't help but notice how Sasuke sulked for the rest of the evening as Sakura lavished her attention on the rest of them, even resting her fingers lightly on his hand once or twice as she gestured comically during a story.

She might have bitten Kankuro's head off for his observations, but she was apparently taking his words to heart. He downed the rest of his beer, heart stopping when Sakura paused her chatter to give him a bright smile. He returned it, feeling warmed from the inside out.

_Promising, indeed..._


	5. Chapter 5

**A Note:** Dudes, I am so sorry this took so long. I had a major case of the blocks. The good news is, I think I'm back on track, so hopefully the next update won't be weeks in coming. Also, this chapter totally breached the 5,000 words mark, so you at least get a longer chapter this time. Enjoy!

**Warning:** There is some mild sexual content in this chapter. Also, Gaara is getting more and more out of character, for which I apologize profusely. I'm just having too much fun teasing him!

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

Gaara paced back and forth in his office, impatient for Temari to get back from whatever task she had been assigned for the first portion of the chunin exams. They had begun that morning; all the students were required to sit for a traditional written exam, as usual. Some trick or other was always employed to make it seem as though intelligence was necessary to pass, but all that was really needed were some basic shinobi skill—mainly the ability to lie or cheat their little asses off.

His sister must have been proctoring, as she wasn't in charge of the written portion, but the next—and far more deadly—maze portion of the exam. Nevertheless, the written exam could take hours, and Gaara's patience was wearing thin. He had decided, reluctantly, that it was finally time to discuss his burgeoning feelings for Sakura to someone, and his trustworthy and close-mouthed sister seemed as good a candidate as any. He knew she wouldn't tell Kankuro, who was, at the moment, the main person he _did not_ want finding out about his little crush. Well, him and that damned Uchiha.

He couldn't say exactly what it was that had made him decide it was time to confess his feelings to a third party, with the obvious exception of one too many arousing morning yoga sessions. Waking up early to practice yoga with Sakura was giving a whole new meaning to the term "morning wood," and Gaara was relatively certain that if he didn't do _something_ soon, he would spontaneously combust.

He had discovered over the past week that he was extremely thankful shinobi wore loose, breathable clothing, for if he wore anything like Sakura's delectable outfits (which he was also rather thankful for and which got decidedly more scandalous with each passing day), he would have been subject to a multitude of embarrassing situations unfitting for any self-respecting male, let alone the leader of an entire hidden village.

Just that morning, Gaara's _situation_ had become so severe that he almost excused himself early to take care of it. The memory still brought a flush to his cheeks and sent his blood rushing quickly south. He had resolved, therefore, to stop thinking of it altogether, which resulted in him thinking about it pretty much constantly.

It was always the damn downward dog that started everything. It was her favorite pose, and Sakura used it during warm up stretches, sun salutes, transitions, ending stretches... It seemed she was prepared to thrust her ass in the air at any given moment, legs apart, face to the floor, body in a perfect "V". It sent Gaara's mind into a whirlwind, imagining _other_ positions he wouldn't mind giving a try.

_Then _she would touch him. Adjusting poses, straightening limbs, bending his torso in the right direction, feather-light touches of encouragement, firm nudges of praise, even violently corrective holds—Sakura was forever touching him, and it did nothing to help control his errant thoughts.

Every day he resolved to keep his mind out of the gutter and on the task of learning a valuable new training tool, but at the first sight of Sakura's pert, round bottom in revealing shorts, his resolutions flew out the window. He would inevitably spend the rest of the session daydreaming scenarios in which she would end up in similar poses, but around, on top of, or underneath _him_.

_That morning, _though, had taken the cake. It had started as every other did, with Sakura stretching innocently and Gaara gritting his teeth at the tightening in his groin, trying to follow her lead without looking like a moron or staring inappropriately. She informed him they would be working on balance, both because that trait in particular was useful for shinobi and because Gaara's sense of balance was atrocious.

_"We'll start with tree pose. It's super basic, so you shouldn't have any trouble, ok?" _

_She turned on her mat to demonstrate and Gaara rolled his eyes. Normal people might not have trouble, but Gaara was a special case. As an accomplished shinobi, not to mention political figurehead, people expected him to be poised and composed at all times. Usually, he could maintain a facade of serenity with his sand there to keep him from making a fool of himself. _

_In actuality, it was because he had grown up with the sand shield that he was such an enormous klutz—he relied on it to a fault. And it was because of the sand that up until the yoga lessons began, not a soul knew about his clumsiness apart from Shukaku. But because he refrained from using his sand during their lessons (if he used it, he wouldn't really be learning anything), Sakura had quickly discovered his lack of dexterity. And now that she knew about his unfortunate condition, she was determined to rectify it. It made for a lot of humiliating moments, and Gaara had a feeling things were about to get a lot worse._

_Sakura straightened her back and gracefully moved her leg, resting her left foot on the inside of her right thigh._

_"You can keep your arms down for now. When you feel comfortable, go ahead and put them above your head, like this," she explained, moving her arms as she did so._

_Gaara straightened up, lifted his leg as she had, tried to reach the inside of his thigh, and promptly fell over. He cursed and she turned, shaking her head._

_"What happened?"_

_"Oh, you know," he said. "I just thought I might be more comfortable trying it out down here."_

_She grinned as he pulled himself upright to try again. "Let me see you do it," she demanded._

_He resisted the urge roll his eyes again, slowly lifting his foot to bring it to his leg. He could feel himself losing balance and windmilled his arms comically in a desperate effort to remain standing. Sakura grabbed his hands and pulled him forward so he wouldn't fall. He scowled at her and held his hands palm up in a "see what I have to work with" gesture. This time she rolled her eyes at _him_._

_"Okay, it's obvious that we're going to have to take it slower. Instead of putting your foot on your thigh, try resting it on your calf. Once you master that, we can move on to something harder."_

_She moved back to her mat and resumed her position while Gaara did as she suggested. He stumbled a few times, but for the most part she was right; it _was _easier. They spent awhile perfecting the pose and after ten minutes, Gaara could not only hold the position without falling, he could do it with his arms above his head._

_"I feel like an idiot," he told her, arms beginning to go numb from holding them in the same position. _

_"Well, you don't look like an idiot," she assured him, taking in his rigid posture. "You look very... graceful."_

_Gaara narrowed his eyes and pursed his lips. "I'm so sure," he quipped, lowering his arms and leg._

_"You don't have to believe me, you just have to do it right," she rejoined, reaching down to straighten her mat. "Anyway, I think you're ready for something a bit more challenging. You think that made you look like an idiot, wait until you see this one."_

_"Oh... goody," he enthused. Sakura ignored him._

_"Now, this position is actually one of three warrior poses. We've done warrior two before; this is just a variation on that. It takes a little bit of work getting into it, because if you try to go straight into it, you're more likely to fall. Just watch me first, and then you can give it a go."_

_Gaara crossed his arms over his chest and gave her his full attention. Sakura stood straight again and lifted her arms above her head, palms together. She lifted her leg so that her thigh was parallel with her waist. Slowly, she lowered her arms, straightening them so they were shoulder-height. She lifted the raised leg behind her, lowering her torso simultaneously. The result was Sakura standing stock still on one leg, chest and arms thrust out for balance, her right leg behind her and parallel with the ground._

_Gaara looked at her like she was crazy._

_"You have _got _to be kidding," he scoffed. "There is no way I'm doing that."_

_Sakura straightened and propped her hands on her hips. Her eyes flashed in mounting frustration and Gaara thought she had never looked more beautiful._

_"You will do it and you will like it," she commanded. _

_Gaara assumed she had bullied more than one rookie shinobi into doing her bidding with that expression, but unfortunately for her, he was not one to be cowed. He came with his own stubborn streak that had served him well over the years._

_"I _absolutely _will not." _

_She stepped closer. "Gaara," she said in a warning tone, "how will you ever get better if you don't try?" She was gritting her teeth and grimacing in a way that would have lesser men ducking for cover._

_"Look," he began, raising his hands in a placating manner, "I'm _sure_ that this pose is great for balance and all that, but I just don't think it's for me."_

_Sakura growled at him (growled! He rejoiced inwardly; she was sexy when she growled) and stepped closer again, invading his mat and personal space, thrusting her cute little nose into his face._

_"And why not?" she ground out._

_He rested his hands on her shoulders and stymied the urge to rub her arms._

_"Sakura, sometimes I have trouble balancing in these crazy poses on _two _feet. Asking me to try that is like asking Naruto to go a full day without saying 'dattebayo'."_

_She rolled her eyes, but her gaze softened. She turned those big green eyes on him and put a sweet, simpering look on her face. Apparently she was going to try a different tactic. Gaara braced himself as she leaned a bit closer, quirking her head to the side and leaning into his embrace. The tips of her breasts just barely skimmed his chest._

_"Will you try it for me, then?" she pleaded. _

_Gaara's breath started to come in little pants and he was getting dizzy. He would try_ anything_ to get her away from him right now. He could feel goose bumps forming on his arms and the place where her chest touched his burned. He pushed her away firmly, still holding her shoulders at arms' length._

_"Sure. For you," he said, shooting for a nonchalant tone, but his voice coming out high and strained. Sakura beamed._

_"I'll stay right here to help you in case you get wobbly," she said._

_"Right. 'Cause that's better."_

_"You know," she said as he readied himself, straightening his posture and stepping back on his mat, "you're awfully sassy, Kazekage-kun. You never used to be this sarcastic."_

_"Oh no," he assured her, lifting his leg and holding out his arms, "I really was always this sarcastic. Usually, I just respond to people in my head instead of out loud."_

_"So, does it mean anything that you've taken to responding sarcastically _to me_ out loud?" Sakura's hands were hovering next to his waist, waiting for him to stumble._

_"Um..." Gaara pursed his lips, trying to concentrate on not falling and answering her without giving anything away at the same time. He could feel his precarious balance faltering._

_"Now try to straighten that back leg," she instructed. Gaara did as he was told, grounded leg shaking and face pointing to the ground. _

_"You were saying?" Sakura asked._

_"What?" _

_Gaara was starting to sweat. The morning sun was getting hot, he was in a completely unnatural and uncomfortable position with the girl of his dreams standing right in front of him, he was in danger of falling on his ass like an idiot, and she was practically demanding that he confess his feelings for her. It was the stuff nightmares were made from._

_"Your out-loud sarcasm. Does it mean anything?" she prompted._

_"Oh." A bead of sweat rolled off the end of Gaara's nose. He watched it fall and plop onto his mat. "I guess it means... I trust you," he ground out._

_Sakura jumped a bit, as if startled. "Really?" she squealed, ducking and looking up at his downturned face. She was _right there_. Her nose was inches from his, her eyes were wide and delighted, and her pretty pink mouth was within kissing distance. It was too much._

_Gaara stumbled, losing his tenuous grip on stability and pitching forward onto Sakura. His yoga mat slid back and he sunk to his knees in the soft, warm sand, Sakura stretched beneath him with a leg between his knees and her breasts flush with his chest._

_"Oh!" she cried, "I got sand in my eyes!" She blinked furiously to rid herself of the offending particles. Gaara watched her with wide eyes, taking stock of the situation and trying not to panic._

_Sakura reached a hand between them to rub her eyes, but Gaara stopped her with a quick movement, trapping her wrists._

_"Don't rub," he told her throatily. "It'll make it worse."_

_"It hurts," she whined, still blinking, tears running down her face._

_"Here, hold on," he said. Pushing her hands back into the sand, Gaara leaned closer and blew gently on her face, blowing the sand away from her eyes. He had never done anything so sensual to another human being in his life. After a moment, he stopped, but didn't lean back._

_"Better?" he asked. She blinked a few more times before opening her eyes, which glistened from the tears._

_"Yes, thank you," she whispered breathily._

_Gaara said nothing, choosing instead to gaze at her with a blush steadily climbing on his face and resting on the tips of his ears. Sakura, realizing their position, flushed as well, jerking suddenly and moving her knee closer, accidentally coming directly into contact with Gaara._

_He felt himself grow hard and couldn't stop a groan from escaping; he actually almost rolled his hips at the wonderful sensation. He had gone too long without stimulation after days of being aroused in Sakura's presence. This was too much; he had to move _now_._

_"I'm so sorry!" she gasped. "Did I hurt you?"_

_He was in pain, all right, just not the kind she was thinking._

_"I'm fine," he grunted, rolling carefully off her so as not to come into any more contact with her than necessary. He stood quickly, turning around to brush the sand off and arrange his shirt to hide the evidence of his arousal._

_"I... I should go," he said, walking toward the gate without gathering his things or looking back at Sakura._

_"No, Gaara, please," she pleaded, "please wait. I'm sorry!"_

_He stopped, breathing deeply and trying to collect his scattered wits. He had almost made another colossal mistake; this was getting totally out of hand. He had to do something soon._

_"It's getting late."_

_"No, Gaara, come on. Please stay. I didn't mean to embarrass you! We won't do anymore balancing, I promise. Please let's just finish?" she begged. Gaara turned to look at her. She looked close to tears and seemed desperate for him to stay. He heaved a sigh and started walking back._

_"Okay, let's finish," he agreed._

Gaara groaned at the memory. Each day he was in close proximity with her, he became more in danger of kissing her brains out. Not to mention he was sure that having his hormone levels in constant overdrive couldn't be healthy. He checked the clock on the wall again, wondering for the umpteenth time what could possibly be taking Temari so long. As if on cue, his door opened and his sister stepped in.

"You wanted to see me?" she asked, shutting the door behind her.

"I need your help," he began.

* * *

><p>"So what was it you needed advice on again?" Ino asked as she and Sakura rolled bandages in the hospital supply room.<p>

"Boys," Sakura said, finishing the roll she was on and picking up a new one. They were spending the afternoon preparing for the maze exam that would start the next morning. Not only did the hospital need to have supplies prepared for the genin's packs, they needed to have extras available for those who would inevitably be injured during the trial.

"_Ooooh_," Ino exclaimed excitedly, setting down her roll and turning to face Sakura completely. She crossed her arms and sat back, preparing for girl talk. "Do you like Sasuke-kun again? 'Cause I saw him the other night and he was totally all over you," she gushed.

"No, Pig, I don't like Sasuke again. I told you I was over that ages ago." She bit her lip and stopped rolling, setting the bandages next to Ino's partially-completed pile. "The person I'm thinking of is a little more distinguished than Sasuke. And a lot more unattainable."

"_No_," Ino gasped, eyes alight with pleasure and the promise of juicy gossip. "Don't tell me you're crushing on the _kazekage_," she practically squealed and Sakura quickly shushed her, motioning for her to quiet down with both hands.

"Shut up," she hissed, "I don't want people finding out about it, ok?"

"But _Forehead_! Oh, I can't even believe it! This is _so much_ better than you crushing on Sasuke!"

"_Don't_ tell anyone," Sakura repeated sternly. "I'm telling you this because I trust you, alright?"

"Yeah, yeah," Ino responded, waving away her concern."So, do you think he likes you back? You have been spending an awful lot of time together." She raised her eyebrows suggestively.

"I... I think he might," Sakura confided, blushing heavily. Ino threw her hands into the air.

"So then what's the problem?" she shouted.

"Ino, _please_," Sakura shushed again. "I think... well, I think Kankuro might like me, too."

Ino pursed her lips, affecting concern. "Hmmm. That could be a problem. Two brothers, one girl." She thought for a moment. "I don't suppose you'd consider having them both?"

"NO! _Ino!_"

"Sor-ry, it was just a thought," Ino said moodily. "I mean, geez, they're both gorgeous."

"_That_ is not the problem," Sakura scolded.

"I know, I know. So, do you like Kankuro, too?"

"Well, I thought so at first and I _do_ like him a lot. He's nice, super fun, and really sweet, but, it's just... _Gaara_," she finished lamely.

"I know, Forehead, I know. If I thought I could get him, I'd totally go for it," Ino sighed lustily.

"Geez, thanks, Pig. I _just_ told you I had a crush on him," Sakura said sarcastically.

"I know you did, and I'm telling you, that is one _hot _piece of man. That curly red hair...mmmm. _Gorgeous_," she explained without remorse.

"I get it," Sakura snapped. "But what should I do?"

"What do you mean 'what should you do'?" Ino shrieked. "You like him, he likes you, what's the problem? Drag him off, have your wicked, wicked way with him, and live happily ever after. Problem solved."

"Uh, no," Sakura refused. "First of all, that's what you would do, not me. Second of all, I kind of meant, what should I do about two _very competitive_ brothers liking me, and me not really being sure how I feel about either of them. I don't want to cause trouble or hurt anyone's feelings."

"Don't want to cause problems, huh?" Ino picked up her bandages and began rolling again. "You never said anything about not causing trouble, Forehead. That makes things much more difficult."

"No shit," Sakura grumbled, picking up her own roll.

"I don't suppose having both of them _at the same time,_ if you catch my meaning, is an option?"

"Uh, no. And the guy in the coma in Room 314 catches your meaning, Pig," Sakura rolled her eyes.

"What can I say?" Ino quipped, shrugging her shoulders. "Subtlety isn't my strong suit."

"No shit."

* * *

><p>"What should I do?" Gaara cried, throwing his arms in the air without stopping his pacing. He was giving Temari a headache.<p>

"Well, first of all, you should _calm down_," she admonished. "You're gonna wear a hole in your carpet at this rate."

"I don't _care_ about the damn carpet! This situation is way past being out of my control, and _I don't like it_," he grumbled, stopping his pacing anyway and collapsing with a huff in his office chair.

Temari smirked at his frustration, trying to hide it behind her hand to avoid another explosion. He was acting more like a love-struck teenager than the leader he was. She supposed this is what came from forcing fifteen-year-olds to run villages and command armies without allowing them a social life. That, and hating them during their tender childhood years. Gaara was forced to do all his growing up _now_.

"Gaara, getting a crush on someone is rarely within _anyone's_ control. It's just sort of something that happens. It'll be fine."

"Were you not listening," he growled, sounding slightly hysterical. "I'm pretty much in a constant state of sexual frustration over here. _Something_ has to be done. I can't concentrate on the chunin exams!"

"Okay, first of all," Temari began, a grimace on her face, "_way _too much information. Second, you do know there are things you can do to fix that problem, right?"

It was Gaara's turn to grimace. "_That_ was too much information. I don't need a sex ed course; I'm perfectly aware of how the human body works—"

"Could have fooled me," Temari muttered.

"—and _furthermore_," Gaara continued as if she'd never spoken, "I just meant that I have to get these feelings under control before I attack the poor girl or something."

"Alright," Temari sighed, running her hands over her face. It had been a long day. "Why don't you try telling her how you feel."

Gaara looked at her like she'd grown a second head.

"Are you kidding me? That's your solution? I could have thought of that myself. And anyway, that won't work," he griped.

"Why not?"

"Because I _don't want_ to tell her how I feel, for one. And for another, I have no idea whether she likes me back."

"Gaara," Temari sighed again, "sometimes you have to take a risk and tell the girl first. Have you been given any indication that she doesn't like you?"

"Well," he hedged, "I don't think so. But I'm not really sure." Gaara refused to look at Temari, staring into his lap and fiddling with the edge of his shirt. She fought back a groan.

"Here's what you need to do." He looked up eagerly.

"You need to get some indication of how she feels about you. That way you'll know whether to say anything, and either way you can get some kind of closure and move on."

Gaara grimaced. Apparently, she mused, this wasn't the answer he was looking for.

"I have no idea how to go about doing that," he told her stoically.

"Gaara," she frowned, "there are lots of things you can do. You can give her a gift, ask her on a date, hell, you can talk to her friends. I don't know! I'm not an expert on this! Why don't you ask Kankuro, he knows all about getting girls to like him."

"No!" Gaara shouted, almost too quickly. "I don't want to ask Kankuro. And don't you tell him about this! I only told you because I knew you wouldn't tell anyone."

"I won't tell him," she began slowly, "but why exactly don't you want him to know you like her?"

Gaara went back to fiddling with his shirt, avoiding the question as long as possible. Temari waited him out.

"I'm pretty sure he likes her, too," he finally said miserably.

Temari barely fought back the scowl that threatened to surface. This was not a situation she relished being caught in the middle of.

"What makes you think he likes her?" she questioned carefully.

"He's always touching her and hanging around her. Plus, the other night when we went out and that damned Uchiha was all over her, he didn't look too happy about it."

"Kankuro's always touching and hanging off everyone. And maybe he just doesn't like Uchiha Sasuke. Not many people do," she soothed.

"Maybe," he muttered wretchedly.

"I have a better idea," Temari said brightly, hoping to cheer him up. "Why don't you go talk to Naruto. He has a girlfriend and he's close to Sakura. He might have some ideas and you know he isn't trying to get her too."

"I thought of that... the problem is, while Naruto's plenty trustworthy, he's also plenty _loud_." Gaara shuddered at the thought of everyone visiting from Konoha overhearing about his infatuation on accident.

"I really don't know what to tell you, then, little brother. You've rejected all my best ideas."

"If those were your best ideas, you really need to get back to the drawing board," he grumbled.

The rude gesture she gave him in response did nothing to bolster his enthusiasm.

* * *

><p>Sakura hummed happily as she tested her antidote yet again against Kankuro's poison. The evening sun shone into the glass windows of the greenhouse, lighting everything with a pretty orange glow and making Sakura look like some unearthly being, her pink hair glinting. Kankuro stared at her dreamily, ignoring his own experiment in favor of watching her work.<p>

"I think I've almost got this," she said excitedly. He shook his head to break out of his daze and smiled winningly at her.

"That's great! When do you think we'll be ready for a live test?" he asked eagerly.

"Not for at least another couple of days. I have to be on call tomorrow during the maze part of the exam—they don't want anyone to die—and I would rather you not poison yourself to death," she explained.

"I already told you I should be able to control it with my chakra. I'm sure it will be fine," he said nonchalantly.

Sakura grimaced. "I'm not really willing to take that chance with your life. You'll just have to wait."

Inwardly, Kankuro cheered at her concern, though he was fairly certain she would have been that way with anyone.

"Alright, fine," he conceded, leaning against the lab bench. "You almost done here?"

"Yep. Let's clean up and get back to the mansion. I'm exhausted."

Kankuro helped her clean their mess and store their potions, making sure they were carefully marked and the storage cabinet locked before leaving the greenhouse. As they walked, she chattered about her day, gesturing animatedly, and he tried to stretch inconspicuously, letting his arm drape over her shoulder as he brought it down. She glanced at it quickly and he was afraid for a moment that she would ask him to move it, but instead she just left it there and continued talking as if nothing had happened. He couldn't stop the grin that stole over his face.

He held the door open for her and when she walked through the doors to the mansion first he lamented the loss of contact. Walking close to her as they wandered upstairs to the bedrooms, he broached a topic he'd been wanting to address for several days.

"So, Sakura," he began. She looked at him with those big green eyes of hers and he could feel his breath catching in his throat. She was so beautiful.

"It's my birthday this weekend and I'm thinking of throwing a big party when everyone's here. Do you think you'll be able to come with me?"

"It's your birthday?" she squealed, excitement blooming over her features. "Oh my gosh! Of course I'll come!"

He smiled, relishing her excitement, but wanted to make doubly sure she understood his meaning before he let her go for the night.

"That's great!" he gushed. "I mean, I was sure you would come and all…" he trailed off, steeling his nerves for what he was about to say. He felt a little foolish; he was _never_ this nervous around girls.

"But, I just mean… well," he stammered. She just kept gazing at him with those eyes, those wonderful, wonderful eyes, and he gulped anxiously.

"Well, I was just hoping you would come… as my date," he finished quickly, staring hopefully into her eyes. Maybe if he looked pathetic enough she wouldn't turn him down.

"Oh…" Sakura faltered, looking a bit uncertain. "Well… I mean…" she glanced first one way, then the other, down the hall and Kankuro was certain she was going to say no. He prepared himself to be disappointed, feeling his heart crushing a bit.

"Of course I'll go as your date!" she finished, smiling at him.

"I understand," he said miserably, "I'm sure you have someone you… what? You'll come?" he asked excitedly, his brain finally catching up with his mouth.

"Well, sure. I don't have any other plans, and you asked first," she assured him. While not quite the answer he was looking for, Kankuro would take what he could get.

"Great! That's great!" he enthused. "We're gonna have a blast! I totally won't let you down!" And before he could think about the consequences or worry that she might not appreciate the gesture, Kankuro swooped down on her small form, gave her a quick, tight hug, pecked her on the cheek, and hurried down the hall to his room.

"Night!" he called over his shoulder before rounding the corner.

"Night," Sakura responded weakly, uselessly waving her hand goodbye. She heaved a big sigh and rolled her shoulders before glancing around the hall once again.

"Now, _how _do I get to my room again?" she said to no one in particular. She started down the hallway in the direction Kankuro had gone, turning right where he had gone left, positive they didn't room in the same corridor, at least.

After several minutes of walking, Sakura stopped and stamped her foot in annoyance. She looked in the corner and spotted the same potted plant that she always seemed to pass and contemplated taking out her frustration on the poor foliage.

"What _is it_ with that plant?" she seethed, fully prepared to toss it against the wall so she never had to look at it again.

"Problems?" said a voice behind her. She jumped about a foot in the air and whirled on the eavesdropper, ready to give him a piece of her mind. She slumped against the wall, hand on her heart, when she saw who it was.

"Gaara!" she breathed. "You scared the hell out of me!"

He chuckled, a smirk playing on his lips. "Are you lost?"

She stood and smacked his arm playfully, but really she was grateful he had found her.

"I can never seem to find my room. All your hallways look the same. And I either keep running into the same plant over and over again or you have them placed at strategic intervals just to confuse poor outsiders like me."

"Your room is this way." Gaara led her down the hall, hiding the grin that refused to leave. He stopped several doors down and she grimaced.

"Really? It was right here the whole time?"

He shrugged, giving her a look that said "I had no trouble finding it."

"You sure you all don't just keep moving it to confuse me? I swear it wasn't here the last time."

He raised his eyebrows, trying to stop his lips from quirking into a smile and failing.

She pointed an accusatory finger at him and smiled in triumph. "That's it, isn't it! You have the same furniture and bedding in every room and you have the maids go around and gather everyone's luggage in the morning and move it all around just to confuse everyone. I _knew _it."

"To the best of my knowledge, no one else has had difficulty locating their rooms," he said tonelessly.

She blanched and then grimaced, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"You have to face facts," he told her in the same neutral voice. "You have no sense of direction."

She stared at him in shock for a moment before bursting into laughter. "You just made a joke!" she accused.

Gaara smirked, inwardly rejoicing that he had actually made her laugh while _trying_. Sakura's giggled died down and they stood awkwardly in the hall for a few moments, he unwilling to leave her alone and she not wanting to be rude and ditch him in the hall.

"Well," she finally said, hand inching for the doorknob.

"Well," he repeated, shuffling his feet.

They spoke at the same time.

"I'd better get to bed."

"I suppose I should let you get some sleep."

They stared at each other, Sakura giggling awkwardly before Gaara finally shook himself out of his stupor.

"Goodnight, Sakura," he said quietly, bowing gracefully before turning walking down the corridor, leaving her alone.

Sakura watched his retreating form before smiling giddily to herself and retiring for the evening, letting the door shut behind her with a click.


	6. Chapter 6

**A note**: I wanted to fit the birthday party in, but it just would have been too long. This chapter is kind of a filler, leading up to the party. It's not as long as usual, but I figured getting something out now was better than making you wait.

Thanks so much for all the reviews! Hope you enjoy!

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

The setting sun shone through the window behind Gaara's desk, lighting the room with a deep orange glow. Gaara scrubbed his hands over his face; it had been a long week and he was just finishing up the paperwork to send off to the other hidden villages concerning the deaths of several shinobi in the maze trial.

Unlike Konoha, who employed a "Forest of Death" approach to the maze, Suna simply dropped off groups of genin at a strategic distance both from the village and each other and instructed them to make it back in one piece. It wasn't a maze, per se, but when one considered how easy it was to get lost in the middle of the desert, it qualified for the task.

As usual, each team was given one scroll (heaven and earth) and they needed two scrolls, one of each type, to pass the test. The genin participants had three days to make it back to the village without dying and with two scrolls. Not only had some candidates managed to kill the others (always to be expected in the exams—shinobi knew going in that it was a bloody and dangerous profession), two entire groups had managed to die without _any_ help from other genin.

When it was discovered that several scrolls had gone unrecovered, a search party was sent to find the missing teams. They were found buried in sand dunes several miles from the village and their starting points. There had been a nasty sandstorm on the second day of the test; likely they had not prepared for desert conditions, gotten lost, and died of suffocation or heat stroke.

Unfortunately for Gaara, each death meant a ridiculous amount of paperwork for _him_, since he was in charge of the village hosting the exams. He wondered if he had known as a child how troublesome it was for the kages to report shinobi deaths that he might have restrained himself a bit. He doubted it.

_And this is what I get for being such a little piss ant as a kid_, he thought. _Now I have to deal with all the _other _morons and their messes_.

He sighed and finished his last report, sealing the scroll and setting it aside to be sent to the Mizukage. Mei would likely not be thrilled, but she would just have to suck it up.

In the end, one team from Suna, two teams from Konoha, one team from Kiri, and three from Kumo had passed. Thankfully, no one from Konoha was killed (they had all been young this year), but two shinobi from Suna had died in combat and a third was seriously injured, as well as one of Hinata's students.

Shikamaru's team had been one of the two from Konoha that passed (the other was Sasuke's), which was good news for Gaara. That meant his sister was one step closer to getting to stay the month given to prepare for the final matches. One of Shikamaru's kids just had to beat up another kid and they'd be set.

They were currently participating in the initial one-on-one trials and Gaara had no idea who had moved on in each round. No one who was informed had been in his office since the last team returned from the maze that morning. He assumed they must be almost finished by now, but he wasn't really supposed to interrupt to find out.

Gaara stood and stretched, his joints cracking, and made for the door. It was possible that Sakura was in the hospital wing with Hinata and her team; maybe she knew how things were progressing. As he made his way down the deserted hallway, Gaara tried to convince himself that he only wanted to know what was happening with the exams and that this was not simply an excuse to see Sakura.

He supposed he should take it as a sign that he couldn't even make _himself _believe otherwise.

* * *

><p>Sakura leaned over Shuu's bed, adjusting his IV before checking off something on his chart. Hinata sat on a chair at the foot of the bed, worrying her lip and closely watching her teammate Hana, who gripped Shuu's hand with white-knuckled fingers. Tears slipped down the teen's face, but Hinata refrained from saying anything, opting instead to watch the scene in nervous silence. Their other teammate, Chie, was nowhere to be found.<p>

"Hana-chan," Shuu whispered, weakly squeezing her hand back. Hana's head jerked up and a fresh stream of tears coursed down her cheeks.

"Hana-chan," he said again, "It'll be alright. Sakura-sensei says I'm going to be _fine_."

Hana nodded, but didn't look any happier. Sakura decided it was time to butt in.

"Hana-chan," she scolded, not unkindly, "Shuu-kun just got a bit of a nasty cut, that's all. I patched him right up with my chakra, and now he'll be good as new with a little rest."

Hana nodded again and stared into her lap. She didn't speak for some moments, but then all of a sudden she blurted, "I know you're a good healer, Haruno-sensei. _Really _good. But… but what if something goes wrong? A complication, or something we missed…"

"Hana…" Hinata warned, her tone chastising.

"I didn't miss anything," Sakura said, starting to lose patience. She must have reassured the girl half a dozen times that her friend would be fine.

_Perhaps the reason this girl annoys me so much is that she reminds me a bit of myself at that age… Presumptuous but lacking confidence, talented but lacking direction, and totally besotted with her teammate._

She sighed, glancing back at the bedridden Shuu, who was still gripping her hand. _At least he seems to reciprocate her feelings._

She smiled then, and turned back to the still-panicky Hana. "Look, Hana, I know you're worried. I went through much the same thing during _my_ chunin exams. If you want, when we both have some time, I can show you some basic healing techniques. You have the compassion and heart for a medic."

The girl's eyes widened and Sakura winked at her before turning to Shuu.

"Now, Shuu-kun, if you don't think you need anything else right now, I'm going to go check on those Suna shinobi."

"Sure, Sakura-sensei. I'm fine now. Hana-chan and Hinata-sensei will make sure I have anything else I need."

"Good," Sakura said. "I'll see you later, Hina-chan. I'll let Naruto know—"

She was cut off by a yelp and the sound of ungainly feet stomping down the hall. Suddenly, a face that matched Shuu's exactly—with the exception of a large purple bruise marring his left eye—barreled into the room, knocking Sakura aside and careening into the bed.

"Shuu!" the boy wailed, burying his face in his brother's hospital gown. Hana squealed and yanked her hand away, glaring at the interloper and looking as if she was about to blacken his other eye. Shuu, who didn't look the least bit distressed, began patting his back in a slow, soothing circle.

"It's ok, Shin. I'm fine now. Sakura-sensei patched me up in a jif. She always takes care of us."

Shin looked up tearfully and she smiled at him indulgently. Shin and Shuu were her favorite boys in the world (excepting _her boys_, of course). She had watched them grow since diapers, so she knew how strong their bond was and how Shin worried about his reckless twin.

"Don't you trust me, Shin-kun?" she pouted. He swiped at his eyes and grinned at her.

"Sure, Sakura-sensei! If you say he's fine, then he's fine!"

"_See_ Hana?" Shuu gloated. Hana's lips turned in a pretty pout and she turned up her nose at the pair of them.

"You're hopeless!" she sniped. The boys merely laughed. They were still giggling, heads together, when Sasuke appeared in the doorway, a dark frown marring his face.

"You look more taciturn than usual," Sakura joked. "What's up?"

Sasuke simply nodded at his student before stalking over to the bed and yanking Shin back by the collar of his shirt.

"_What_ did I tell you about leaving after your match?" he glowered. Shin's face scrunched into an expression of concern; Sakura thought he might cry again at any second.

"Oh, Sasuke, stop. He was just worried about Shuu."

"And _I_ told him you were taking care of it. You didn't even wait to see how Nami's match turned out."

"Aww, sensei," Shin whined, "I know she won it."

Sasuke scowled more deeply.

"Of _course _ she won, idiot! But her team was supposed to _see _her win. Now I've got a sniveling girl out there, who's all worked up because _Shin-kun_ didn't see her win!" he snapped, pitching Shin's name high, affecting a teenage girl's voice. Sakura winced.

It wasn't that Shin shouldn't have been reprimanded for disobeying; he should have waited until dismissed to come see his brother. But Sasuke was always a little harsh on his kids, and to top it off, _she _ had been that teenage girl pining after her teammate. Did _every _girl form a crush on the boys in their squad?

A new tear squeezed out of the corner of Shin's eye, though Sakura could tell he was trying to hold it together. Sasuke shook the front of his shirt, shouting, "And _what_ did I tell you about crying?"

Sakura stepped up and brushed Sasuke's hand away, wrapping a hand around Shin's shoulders. At 14, he still had some growing to do, though his height almost matched Sakura's.

"Knock it off, Sasuke. Everyone's had a rough day. He was worried about his brother."

Sasuke looked about to argue with her, but Sakura cut him off.

"Just _leave it_," she said in her most menacing voice. Sasuke pondered that for a moment, and then shrugged, turning to leave.

"Whatever," he sulked. "It's getting crowded in here anyway."

As he walked out the door, Gaara appeared. Instead of waiting for the Kazekage to enter before leaving, as would have been proper, he moved swiftly past without even so much as a hello. Sakura was embarrassed that her former teammate couldn't even manage to observe protocol or affect politeness around heads of state, but Gaara didn't seem bothered by it.

"Everyone feeling alright in here?" he asked kindly, nodding to the students gathered around the bed.

"Yes Kazekage-sama," they chorused. He nodded once to them before turning to Sakura.

"Haruno-san," he addressed her formally, "I wondered if I might have a word." Sakura bit back a grin. This from the same man she saw stumble through basic yoga poses on a daily basis.

"Certainly, Kazekage-sama," she replied just as courteously. "I was about to go check on some of the Suna patients; will you walk with me?"

Instead of answering, he simply moved to the door. Sakura followed, turning once more to Hinata.

"I'll let Naruto know you're here if I see him. Take care guys."

Hinata thanked her and Sakura led Gaara down the hall to the next room on her rounds.

"What's up?" she asked, turning into a door several rooms away.

Ignoring her question, Gaara commented, "How is it that you get lost in the mansion, which I and most people find to be fairly navigable, but you can spend a couple hours in _this_ maze and be fine?"

"I spend _a lot_ of time in hospitals, Gaara," she explained, checking her patient's chart before moving up to feel his vitals.

"How are you feeling, Gin?" she asked him, examining his heavily-bandaged forearm.

"Better, Sakura-senpai," he told her, bowing as best he could to the Kazekage while lying in a hospital bed.

Gaara waved him off, choosing to wait by the door until Sakura finished. Once she had questioned Gin on some particulars, she moved on, listing instructions as she walked out the door. Once they were partway down the hall, Sakura stopped and faced Gaara.

"Are you going to talk to me as I go, or do you not deign to speak in front of normal people?" she questioned crossly. Gaara grinned inwardly; it wasn't that he thought himself above anyone, he just wasn't comfortable conversing in front of… well, almost everyone.

"I'll wait," he smirked, refusing to say anything further until he had her undivided attention. What had started as a simple quest for information was turning into casual time with Sakura. He couldn't be more pleased. His day had been long and filled with boring paperwork, but he meant to make the most of his evening.

Sakura heaved an exasperated sigh, but grinned at Gaara all the same. She couldn't really stay mad at him; not when he had that indulgent smile on his face, the one he only ever seemed to give her. It made her heart melt and her pulse flutter. "Alright, then, Kazekage-kun," she teased, "you wait here for me. I'll come back and get you when I'm done. I know how easy it is to get lost in hospitals."

He chuckled lowly—the equivalent of a hearty laugh for Gaara—and Sakura beamed at him, her whole face lighting up. "Wait here," she said urgently, turning to walk the rest of the way to her patient's room, when Ino walked out of it.

"Forehead, I just finished your rounds. I know you were with Shuu…" Ino trailed off, spotting Gaara.

"Well, well, well," Ino smirked, and Sakura inwardly groaned. "Kazekage-sama. How goes things?" she asked politely, grinning as if she had just been handed an unexpected treat.

Gaara wasn't sure how to react. He knew Ino in passing. She was not close to Naruto, and therefore not close to Gaara. He knew she was friends with Sakura, so he supposed he should make an effort to be personable, but she was acting strange, like she knew something he didn't. That set him on edge.

"Things are fine," he responded warily. She smiled more brightly at him, which only succeeded in confusing him further.

"Good, good," she said airily, walking closer and slinging an arm around Sakura. Sakura rolled her eyes but didn't move away. She was curious to see where Ino was going with this.

"So, you two, I didn't know you hung out outside of office hours."

Sakura blushed. Apparently she wasn't going to _like_ the direction Ino wanted to take the conversation.

"You know _very well_ that I've been showing the Kazekage some of Konoha's yoga moves for training, _Pig_," she hissed.

"Pig?" Gaara asked, gaze bouncing back and forth between the two kunoichi.

Ino laughed airily. "Oh, just nicknames we've had for each other as long as I can remember, right Forehead?" Sakura's face flushed deep red with anger and she glared at Ino, mentally promising her a world of pain and weeks of bedpan duty for this torture.

Gaara's eyebrows shot up. "Forehead?" Sakura could practically see him straining to make the connection, his eyes lifting minutely to rest on her brow, which was probably oily and gross from working all day. Not to mention as enormous as ever. She self-consciously smoothed her bangs.

"Our girl Sakura here just has a _tiny _bit bigger forehead than everyone else," Ino explained, pinching her thumb and forefinger close to demonstrate just how "tiny" the difference was.

Gaara's head cocked and he appeared to examine Sakura's forehead critically. "I don't see it," he said, feeling his own brow for comparison. "Unless I have a big forehead, too. I guess maybe it would have to be, for me to fit a tattoo on it." He grinned suddenly. "Besides, everyone makes fun of me for not having eyebrows, so whatever."

He shrugged casually and Sakura could have kissed him right then. He didn't think she had a big forehead! He must have been the first boy ever to say so to her, and it made Sakura feel like a schoolgirl again.

"Besides, even if you do have a big forehead," he continued, "you're so pretty that no one probably notices it anyway." He said it as if it were the most natural thing in the world, as if it was just a fact and anyone with half a brain ought to know it, and Sakura blushed so deeply that she clashed spectacularly with her hair.

"See that, Forehead," Ino said, giggling, "the Kazekage thinks you're _pretty_ with your big head, just like I told you." She flicked Sakura's forehead to emphasize her point.

"Doesn't everyone?" Gaara asked. Sakura thought if she got any redder she would glow. Now would be a good time for one of those evil houseplants to crop up so she could bury herself in it and die.

"Sure, sure. But she doesn't always believe it. That doesn't matter, though, because there's really only _one person_ Sakura wants to think she's pretty, anyway—and apparently he already does," Ino hinted. "Enough of this though. _Pig _is a much worse nickname than Forehead, and I don't want you to think badly of me, Kazekage-sama. _So embarrassing_." Ino giggled while Sakura shot daggers at her.

_That's easy for you to say_, inner Sakura raged. _You're not the one who just got teased mercilessly—about your worst feature—by your best friend—in front of your crush! And then practically had said crush confessed to said boy without your permission!_

"I actually have to get going, but I wanted to ask you something first," Ino said, smoothly changing the subject. She knew Sakura hated her for this now, but she would thank her later. "Are you both going to Kankuro's party on Saturday?"

Sakura nodded and Gaara shrugged. "He's my brother, I'm sort of obligated," he said.

"Well, then," Ino smirked, walking down the hall and talking over her shoulder, "Maybe you could just go together. See ya!" She turned the corner and was gone. Sakura could have slugged her.

Gaara turned to face her, something like hope etched onto his face. "I don't normally enjoy such functions," he explained, "but I would be more than happy to accompany you." His words didn't match his eyes, which were big and green and begging her to say yes.

Sakura wanted to scream.

"Oh, Gaara," she said, as gently as possible, "I'm going with Kankuro."

He was silent for several moments. She saw the hurt flash in his eyes before his face leveled into his usual stoic mask.

"Right. Of course. I understand. Like I said, I have to go anyway, being his brother and all, so I guess I'll just see you there." He turned to walk down the hall and Sakura reached out a hand to stop him, to make him wait, anything for him not to leave like this.

He stopped but didn't turn around, waiting for her to speak.

"Gaara… he… he asked me first," she said softly, praying he would understand what she wasn't saying, that she wished she could go with him, wished she had the nerve to go back on her promise.

He stood there, still as a statue, and time ticked by. It felt like hours to Sakura before he finally answered.

"Right," he said again, and disappeared down the hall without looking back.

* * *

><p><strong><strong>A Note:<strong>** It has come to my attention that the yoga scenes might be a bit confusing. For those interested, you can check out the link below (spaces removed) to see actual pictures of the poses. I practice yoga, so it was an idea I got to insert it into a fic. It's kind of hard to describe the poses without getting too technical, but I'm going to take a look and see if I can't make them easier to understand.

**Chapter 2:**

1. When Gaara first sees Sakura, she's doing a handstand [www (dot) yogajournal (dot) com (slash) poses (slash) 788]

2. Next, she moves into Downward-Facing Dog [www (dot) yogajournal (dot) com (slash) poses (slash) 491]

3. She then transitions into Upward-Facing Dog, Plank Pose, and then Crane pose, finally moving her legs up and over, into an extreme back bend, or… [Yoga Journal, poses 474, 470, and 468; see above links]

4. Upward-Facing Two Foot Staff Pose [Yoga Journal pose 2475]. Sakura did all of these in a vinyasa, or flow. She didn't really go into the pose correctly, but I wanted her to look cool doing it, so... basically, don't try this at home.

**Chapter 5:**

5. Tree pose [Yoga Journal pose 496]

6. Warrior Three [Yoga Journal pose 941]. This pose is harder than it looks, and it's fantastic for balance. If you must try it at home, stand on a non-slippery surface, take off your socks, and make sure you have your balance in check so you don't fall. Staring straight ahead or at a point on the floor can help a lot.


	7. Chapter 7

_Naruto_ belongs to Kishimoto.

4,710 words, originally posted 4-9-12.

**A note:** I... have no excuses. All I ask is that you forgive the ridiculous extended absence from this and stick with me now that I'm back into it. I am seriously flattered by all the lovely comments you've left. Also, I have not reread this whole thing yet in the interest of getting it posted sooner, but I will edit it within the next few days. Now, enjoy the chapter!

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

Sakura sealed her letter to Tsunade summarizing the current results of the chunin exams and summoned a runner to send it to the message center. Sighing deeply, she stretched in her chair and leaned back, relieved that her final task for the day was complete. Sending periodic reports back to her superiors in Konoha was a pain, but it was a routine aspect of missions and being a shinobi that no one, from the Hokage down to the lowest genin, could escape.

Because all of Sasuke's team and two of Shikamaru's had made it into the final round of testing, Sakura would be staying behind—along with, of course, the genin's leaders and Ino and Neji, who were needed for medical and surveillance reasons, respectively—until the end of the exams next month. Naruto and the others were needed back in Konoha, though Naruto would return to watch the fights.

Unfortunately for Sakura, her extended absence from the village meant she was still required to report in occasionally. Not only that, while she was excited about the prospect of staying in Suna (and therefore near Gaara) for a whole month more, she was nervous about their strained relationship. He had avoided her ever since her refusal to accompany him to Kankuro's party, even finding excuses not to attend their morning yoga practices. She had almost backed out of her date with Kankuro, resolving to attend solo so as not to hurt anyone's feelings, but she felt somewhat duty-bound to go with him. If she told him what was going on with Gaara, he might understand, but it _was_ his birthday, and she _had_ promised. It hardly seemed fair to her to leave Kankuro hanging because she was nursing a crush on his highly unavailable and totally gorgeous younger brother.

Sakura did a fast final check of her patients' charts, ensured the Suna medic in charge of the floor would take care everything of in her absence, and headed back to the mansion to get ready for the party. Her thoughts wandered as she weaved through the dusty Suna streets, and she worried her lip at the thought of what could go wrong.

_I hope Gaara isn't too disappointed about tonight. I mean, it's not like I can only hang out with Kankuro just because I'm going as his date. I'm sure Kankuro won't mind if I just _talk _with Gaara. Or… drink with Gaara. Or… dance with Gaara._

Sakura flushed at thought of dancing with the handsome Kazekage, forcefully pushing the idea out of her mind. There was absolutely no way Gaara would be dancing with _anyone_. She had known him long enough that it was obvious he didn't like drawing attention to himself in public. She wasn't overly fond of making a spectacle either, though for Gaara she was willing to make an exception.

With her attention occupied by thoughts of how to get Gaara back into her good graces, she didn't notice that she had arrived on her floor of the mansion and was once more hopelessly lost until she realized she had been wandering aimlessly for at least ten minutes.

"Blast," she muttered aloud, "where in the hell is my room?"

She glanced down the hall when a voice behind her offered, "Lost, Sakura-chan?"

She jumped, startled, and smiled ruefully at her intruder. "I'm always lost in this maze. Do you know where I'm staying, Temari?"

Temari smirked and bounced Eiji on her hip. "Yep. Follow me, Princess Pink."

"You know I hate it when you call me that," Sakura scowled. The baby peered curiously at her over his mother's shoulder and she smiled. He was small yet, but Eiji smiled back, a toothless grin that lifted Sakura's heart and eased her worries. No matter how messed up her own life was, or the crazy world where daimyo reigned publicly but shinobi controlled things behind the scenes, this innocent life was still sparkling, growing, making the world brighter and better.

It gave Sakura an odd sort of hope for the future, considering she had never really given much thought to children before, other than her few young patients.

"He's very cute," Sakura commented, her eyes not leaving the little boy's.

Temari glanced over her other shoulder. "Would you like to hold him?" she asked.

"Um…" Sakura faltered, never having held an infant. She worked in the surgical and emergency wards, not in obstetrics. "Sure, I guess," she finished lamely, holding her hands out.

Temari stopped and handed Eiji over; Sakura bundled him in her arms and gazed into his eyes, which were brown like Shikamaru's.

"Hey there, little guy," she cooed. Eiji smiled again and reached up a pudgy fist to grab a wayward tendril of hair.

"Oooh, hey kiddo, watch the hair," she giggled, gently tugging the strands out of his grasp and tucking them behind her ear.

"So," Temari drawled as Sakura played with her son, "I heard you'll be going to the party to night as my brother's date?"

"Uh, yeah," Sakura replied, distracted, "he asked me. Why?"

"Oh, no reason," Temari demurred, watching closely for Sakura's reaction. "I was just under the impression that you might want to be attending with a _different_ brother of mine, is all."

Sakura's head shot up so fast Temari was surprised she didn't give herself whiplash. "Where did you hear _that_?" she shrieked, upsetting Eiji. "Did Ino tell you? She did, didn't she! That _bitch_! I told her not to tell anyone!"

Eiji wailed at Sakura's volume, and the young shinobi looked distressed, torn between misplaced anger at her friend, frustration with Temari for knowing something she shouldn't, and calming the crying infant. Temari took her son back, patting his back with a soothing hand before turning a wry grin on her Konoha friend.

"Ino didn't tell me anything," she smirked, "but you sure as hell just did."

Sakura looked flabbergasted, mouth hanging open slightly in shock. Recognition stole over her features and she lowered her head, letting her hair fall in front of her face.

"Well, damn it," she swore softly.

Now Temari was the one at a loss. Here she had solid proof, from the source itself, that the object of her youngest brother's affections returned his feelings. She _could_ let Sakura know how he felt and let nature run its course, but if Gaara found out she had betrayed his confidences, he would never speak to her again.

Despite the fact that her meddling might work out for the best in the end, Temari knew how important it was for Gaara to be able to trust his siblings. And while he might be frustrated with Kankuro for beating him to the punch where Sakura was concerned, he still trusted him implicitly. The only other person he trusted that much was her, and she wasn't about to ruin years of hard work and character building with a slip of the tongue. No, she would keep this to herself until she had a chance to consult with Gaara.

"Don't tell anyone, ok?" Sakura was saying.

"Huh?" Temari asked, shifting Eiji so he was more comfortable.

"_Please_ don't tell anyone. This could be really awkward if Gaara finds out. I don't want him to think I'm weird, and I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings," Sakura confided.

Well, damn. It was obvious what Sakura was leaving unsaid, that she didn't want Kankuro to hear about her little crush and get all heartbroken. And she clearly was afraid Gaara didn't feel the same way about her. Well, this just put a wrench in everything.

"Temari, _promise me_. You do not want to know what I'll do to you if you tell."

Temari snorted. "As if you could hurt me, Princess Pink. Besides, you wouldn't threaten the mother of an infant, would you?"

"You bet your ass I would. Now _promise_."

Temari heaved a disappointed sigh. "Fine. But I think you should let Gaara know how you feel."

"Right," Sakura scoffed, "and have the completely gorgeous, totally powerful, and painfully shy Kazekage reject me and then bury me in sand for daring to confess.

"Sakura," Temari scolded, "Gaara would _never_ do that."

"Well, you're probably right," Sakura conceded, "but I'd rather not risk it."

"Alright, alright." Temari turned and walked a short way down the hall, stopping in front of Sakura's door. "Here ya are, home, safe and sound."

"Thanks, Temari, you're a life saver," Sakura breathed, unlocking her room. "And thanks for agreeing not to say anything."

"Sure. No problem," she replied blandly, bouncing the baby on her hip and returning in the direction they had come.

"Hey, Temari," Sakura called, stopping her. "I'll see you tonight?"

Temari grinned. It was hard to stay annoyed with Sakura. "Yeah, you'll see me tonight," she agreed.

"Great! See you then!" she called, closing her door.

"Yep," Temari told Eiji, continuing down the corridor, "this is going to be an _interesting _evening."

Eiji giggled and nuzzled his mother's neck. Temari smiled fondly at her son, suddenly glad that she and Shikamaru weren't nearly as stubborn in love as Sakura and Gaara.

"Otherwise you might not be here, little boy," she whispered into his downy head.

Eiji just cooed.

* * *

><p>Gaara gripped his glass so hard he was afraid that it would shatter. Sakura was on the dance floor; Kankuro had wheedled and cajoled until she finally gave in and joined him. The music was loud and obnoxious, and while there were couples engaging in less-than-appropriate grinding, it was still early enough that most of the dancers were behaving relatively innocently, if boisterously. Sakura and Kankuro certainly fit into the latter category. Kankuro had never been a particularly agile dancer; the shinobi, despite his ability to control puppets in such a manner that they appeared almost human, did not have the same control over his own limbs.<p>

_Clumsiness must run in the family_, Gaara thought ruefully, suddenly hoping (rather meanly) that Kankuro would trip and fall on his face. Heaven knew Gaara had embarrassed himself enough times in front of Sakura during their yoga sessions. It only seemed fair that Kankuro reciprocate.

Sakura, on the other hand, danced like a dream. Years of yoga and stealth practice had made her lithe and graceful. In all actuality, this was true of every kunoichi on the dance floor. It was one of the things that so obviously set them apart from civilian women. And this being a shinobi party, there were considerably more ninja, male and female, than usual in the bar.

Not that Gaara had any idea how many shinobi frequented the bars in Suna. He had been out drinking more nights in this one week than he had in the last five years combined. And despite the enormous ratio of beautiful, available kunoichi to Gaara, the Kazekage only had eyes for Sakura.

She shone like a brightly colored star, her pink hair gleaming in the low mood lighting, hips swaying seductively to the music. A bubble of jealousy rose in Gaara's throat, choking in its intensity. He couldn't stand the fact that his idiotic, playboy elder brother had managed to beat him to the only girl he had ever actually _wanted_ to ask on a date. Gaara was so caught up in his morose thoughts that he never noticed the song ending or Kankuro coming to sit next to him.

Snagging the nearest available stool, Kankuro plopped down and ruffled Gaara's mop of hair. Startled from his reverie, Gaara let out an undignified yelp of surprise before quickly glancing around to make sure no one had heard. He leveled a glare at Kankuro and cocked an impatient eyebrow.

"S-sorry, man," Kankuro snorted, trying unsuccessfully to hide his laughter. Gaara was not amused.

Spreading his palms in confusion, he asked, "What the hell was that for?"

"Dude, calm down," Kankuro dismissed, clapping him on the back. "What's got you in such a foul mood?"

Gaara _almost _answered that it was him and the disgusting way he shamelessly flirted with anything that moved, but he caught himself in time. Instead he stared at Kankuro with a nondescript expression, which Kankuro knew to mean, "mind your own business."

"It's a _party_, Gaara. You're supposed to have _fun._ You know, dance, drink, chat with _women_."

"I think you're confusing me with someone," Gaara deadpanned. When Kankuro just looked bemused, Gaara elaborated, "Oh, right. You're confusing me with _you_."

Kankuro laughed. "Come _on_. You were like this the other night, too. Stop letting little things get to you. I mean, look at the Konoha shinobi. _Look at them_."

Gaara looked. Naruto and Hinata were bobbing to the music, something with a low beat that set his teeth on edge. Ino was in the corner making out with someone he had never seen before. Shikamaru was sitting at a low table, talking with Temari, who was laughing uncharacteristically every couple of minutes. Lee was in the middle of a group of men and women, all who were listening with fascinated expressions to some no-doubt ridiculous story. Neji was missing completely. Konohamaru weaved on the dance floor, seemingly dancing indiscriminately with anything that moved, male or female.

And Uchiha Sasuke was sequestered on a plush couch, three women draped over and around him. One girl, who looked so young Gaara deliberated having her thrown out, was feeding him pieces of fruit. Another sprawled on his chest, occasionally kissing or biting his neck and ears. The third had straddled his lap, and both were gyrating in such an obviously sexual fashion that Gaara wondered if they were somehow actually participating in the act. As he watched, the woman threw her head back and her mouth opened into a perfect O.

Realizing what he had inadvertently witnessed, Gaara colored so deeply that his cheeks matched his hair and he turned quickly away. Kankuro glanced around to see what had embarrassed his brother and pursed his lips in distaste when he locked onto the scene Sasuke presented.

He laughed sardonically. "Gross. Not _him_, the prick. Forget that bastard. I meant everyone else. What do they all have in common, Gaara?"

"They all look like idiots?" Gaara asked dryly.

"No! They're all having _fun_. What you should be doing."

Gaara sighed and rolled his eyes. "Look, Kankuro, I came tonight, okay? Isn't that enough? Or do have to dictate my every activity as well?"

Kankuro looked wounded at the harsh words and Gaara immediately regretted them. He might have been jealous of Kankuro for "stealing" his date, but it wasn't exactly Kankuro's fault he was too slow to ask Sakura out.

Before he could apologize, Sakura bounced over and slung her arms around each of them. It was obvious that she'd already had a bit to drink, from the way she giggled at them.

"Why do you two look so grumpy, hmmm?" she asked, drawing out the sound obnoxiously.

Gaara opened his mouth to dismiss her question so he could leave them alone, and Kankuro smiled indulgently at her and pulled her small body closer. Her grip on Gaara's shoulder tightened slightly as he did, as if she didn't want to move away, and Gaara's dismissal flew out of his brain. He glanced at the kunoichi beside him with wide eyes, wondering why she didn't seem to want to embrace his brother.

"Gaara's just being his usual, boring self," Kankuro lamented dramatically. "It's like pulling teeth to get him to have any fun."

"Oh, I don't think Gaara's boring," Sakura argued with a mysterious smile. "He just needs a little help getting out of his shell."

Kankuro snorted. "Yeah, well, good luck finding anybody who can do that."

Gaara scowled and turned to leave again. He didn't particularly feel like being lectured for his social habits all night, and he especially didn't want it done in front of Sakura. She tightened her grip on his arm again, though, and Gaara turned to glare at her. His brain was too full trying to figure this girl out!

She seemed to like him well enough when they trained together and spoke. He didn't have much experience with girls, but Gaara would even have gone so far as to say she was flirting with him. But then she accepted a date from his brother, and Gaara didn't know what to think about her behavior. Maybe he had misinterpreted her friendliness? And now, while she was basically _on_ said date, she was gripping onto his shirt like a leech, unwilling to let him leave them in peace.

When he faced Sakura, brow crinkled in displeasure, her eyes were wide and she was biting her lip. For the second time that night, all thoughts of a reprimand flew out of his head at the pretty picture she made. She seemed to be trying to say something with her eyes, and he felt himself harden when she finally let go of her lower lip, the abused flesh glistening red in the low lighting.

_Shit! Not now, not now!_ he thought, shifting uncomfortably. Why was it that he seemed get aroused at the most inopportune moments? Like at crowded parties full of people. At least it was mostly dark.

Sakura seemed about to finally say something when a jonin that Gaara had seen around the village approached to wish Kankuro happy birthday. They chatted—apparently his brother knew her—and after a smile and nod from Sakura, agreed to go dance with her. They walked to the middle of the dance floor with fresh bottles of beer, talking and laughing as they established a comfortable but platonic rhythm.

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief for finally getting a few private moments with Gaara. He stared at her warily, his mouth set into a frown, and she inwardly grimaced at all the damage she had caused.

"Gaara… I wanted to talk to you."

He didn't answer, merely raised an eyebrow in response and waited for her to continue.

"I… I wanted to apologize again for the other day. I know that you haven't been very happy with me, but… well, I was hoping that something like a party wouldn't get in the way of our being friends."

Gaara mentally kicked himself, wondering when he had gotten so stupid. Here this girl was worrying she had done something wrong, something to make him avoid her, when all she had done was accept an invitation to a party. He felt guilty for avoiding her after she had turned him down, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to face her after that particular humiliation.

Hell, he had practically admitted he was in love with her, and she had turned him down flat, and for his _brother_, no less. Gaara's personality wasn't really such that he could easily overlook that kind of embarrassment and carry on their friendship as if nothing had happened. At least, not without a few days to gather his wits and broken ego.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Sakura," Gaara sighed. "I didn't mean to make you worry. It's just… been a busy few days with the exams. I honestly didn't mean to avoid you."

So, a _little_ white lie never hurt anybody.

Sakura looked doubtful. "I'll… I mean, I understand if you're mad. I just didn't want something so silly to get in the way of… our friendship?" She said it like it was a question, as if she was unsure of the true nature of their relationship. It made Gaara's heart hurt, because, at least for him, what they had was fast developing into something much more than _friendship_.

With more fervor than he usually allowed himself, Gaara explained, "Sakura, I _promise_, you have nothing to feel bad for. I was just busy this week. Honest."

She gave him a tentative smile, which he returned whole-heartedly in an attempt to ease her uncertainty. It seemed to do the trick; she flashed him a wide grin and fluttered her eyelashes, sending his heart pounding in his ears.

The rest of the evening passed rather quickly, though no amount of cajoling from Kankuro, Sakura, or Naruto managed to coax Gaara onto the dance floor. He was content to sip his drink and watch the others make fools of themselves, with the obvious exception of Sakura, who he could have watched dance until time stopped.

As the end of the party neared, Gaara found himself uncomfortably high strung and practically drenched in desire from having watched Sakura bounce, sway, twirl, and stretch for the better part of four hours in nothing more than a short black skirt and blue halter top. Her outfit was, as usual, decidedly more modest than many of the women's there, and Gaara wondered not for the first time if she was ashamed of the way she looked. His conversation with Ino about her "big" forehead and lack of self-confidence would suggest that was the case. This left Gaara flabbergasted, for it was obvious to him that she had the most beautiful body of anyone he had seen, ever.

An embarrassed flush tinted the Kazekage's cheeks as he contemplated, for the _nth_ time that evening, what he could do to curb his arousal when he finally reached the privacy of his bedroom. And _who_ he would be thinking about during said curbing.

_Aaand, it's time to go_, he thought with a frown, praying that no one was able to identify the blush on his cheeks and the reason for its existence. He made several hasty goodbyes, making a point to wave to Naruto from across the room, lest his friend notice, for once in his unobservant life, that something was amiss. He had almost made it to the safety of the exit when he spotted Kankuro tugging Sakura along behind him, both giggling madly and flushed with drink. Well, Sakura was giggling. Kankuro was outright roaring with laughter.

Sighing deeply and giving a small shake of his head, Gaara knew he was going to regret what he did next.

He did it anyway.

Quickly ducking out the front entrance to the bar, he snuck around to the back exit, where he knew Kankuro had brought Sakura so they could have some privacy.

Gaara sneered to himself as he contemplated the misguided antics of his elder brother. Kankuro was a top-notch tactician and a first-rate ninja, but sometimes the idiocy of his social life made Gaara's head hurt. Who invites half of Suna _and_ Konoha to the birthday party of the century (if your definition of _party _was to shove too many people into a too small room, ply them with copious amounts of alcohol, and then force them to dance with each other in some medieval form of torture), then ditches everyone to hole up with his date for the evening?

Conveniently, Gaara ignored the fact that Sakura was also taking part in his shenanigans (and that any male over the age of fifteen would gladly insert himself in Kankuro's place at the drop of his hitai-ate).

Creeping silently, he flattened himself against the sun-warmed stucco exterior of the bar when he heard their voices. He almost conjured a bit of sand to use his vision jutsu, but thought the better of it and resigned himself to simply eavesdropping. Kankuro knew Gaara's jutsu almost as well as he knew his own; the chance that he would spot the eye was too great a risk to take. Gaara moved as close to the corner of the building as he dared, stilling his breathing and blending into the shadows seamlessly. He wasn't made Kazekage at fifteen because of his charisma.

He heard Sakura, still breathless with giggles, ask, "Why did you drag me all the way out here, Kankuro?"

"It's quieter out here," Kankuro explained, voice slightly husky and slurred from alcohol.

"I _like_ it when it's loud. It's more fun!" Sakura exclaimed, her shout cutting through the cool desert air.

Kankuro chuckled, and Gaara imagined him running a hand casually through tousled brown hair. Free of his usual makeup, Gaara knew Kankuro made a rather dashing figure in his black slacks and button-down shirt. Of the three Sand Siblings, Kankuro was the most stylish and outgoing, something that was easily reflected in the sheer quantity of his past romantic relationships. It was with bitterness that Gaara realized Sakura would not necessarily be excluded from the long list of females charmed by his good looks.

"It _is_ fun," Kankuro was saying, "but it's _also_ fun to sit and talk out here."

With a loud sigh and a clatter, Sakura seated herself on what Gaara assumed were the empty crates stacked behind the bar. "I suppose," she agreed. "Plus, it was _hot_ in there."

Gaara pictured her fanning herself, tugging on her top to let the cool air reach her skin and revealing the tempting shadow of pert breasts, and felt his own blood heat in response.

"Um… yeah… _hot_," Kankuro replied, sounding strangled. It was all Gaara could do not to leap from his hiding place and strangle him for real.

"So, Sakura," Kankuro began, and Gaara had to force himself to pay attention. "I just wanted to know how you enjoyed yourself tonight. I mean, did you have fun?"

"Oh, Kankuro," Sakura gushed, making Gaara wince, "I had a _wonderful _time! It's not often that I get to go out and have fun with friends. Plus the drinks were yummy and the music was great and I only ever get to dance once in a blue moon."

Well that didn't sound so bad. She hadn't said anything about dancing _with_ Kankuro. Nor had she intimated that they were anything more than friends, or that she wanted to be. Feeling slightly lighter, Gaara tuned back into the conversation.

"...thing else you liked about tonight?"

Silence for a moment, and then, "I'm not sure what you mean."

"I mean, like, you know…the fact that we were sort of on a date."

Gaara could practically taste the tension in the air as Kankuro waited for her response. Hell, Gaara was probably as nervous about it as he was, as it directly affected his future with her.

Finally, she said, "Well, it wasn't much like a normal date, was it? It was a great party, but it's not like we sat down to a quiet dinner and got to know each other better, Kuro-kun."

Wincing at the fact that his brother was suddenly granted a nickname from her perfect lips, Gaara was nonetheless satisfied with her answer. Apparently this hadn't been a _real_ date.

"Well, there are always things we can do to make this seem more like a date," Kankuro purred in a husky baritone.

Oh no. No no no.

"Wh-what do you mean?" Sakura asked, voice hushed.

"I… I really like you, Sakura," Kankuro said in a low tone. Gaara squinted, wishing he could edge closer so he could hear better.

"I like you, too, Kankuro," Sakura replied, sounding nervous.

"Maybe…" Kankuro paused, taking a deep breath. "Maybe the night wasn't like a normal date. But maybe we can end it like a normal date?"

He sounded hopeful, and Gaara was mentally reciting every single curse word he knew.

_Don't you dare, Kankuro, you womanizing shit. Don't do it, don't do it, don't… Please, please don't…_

"Kankuro, I…"

It was silent for several moments, and Gaara was actually holding his breath, waiting and waiting for her to finish that precarious sentence. When she didn't answer after almost a full minute, he squeezed his eyes shut, and then, before he could change his mind, peeked around the corner of the building.

His heart _stopped_.

Kankuro was stooped over her beautiful, tiny, _perfect_ body, and they were kissing, kissing, kissing…

He waited for it to end, ten seconds, twenty, and time seemed to stop, morph, take on a life of its own but _they_ didn't stop.

Stomach in his throat, a strangled noise bubbled up, wrenching its way out of his mouth, and without caring whether they heard him, whether they saw him, whether they knew he had been spying on them, he was running, desperate to get away from the image that was now permanently burned into his eyelids.

* * *

><p><strong>Another note:<strong> I truly am sorry for that cliff hanger. I considered not leaving it here, but oh! isn't it more fun if I do? I promise that I will update this sooner than six months from now. And that it will get better for our Gaara. Also, and please answer this, because it will really help me in my writing, would you all prefer more frequent updates with slightly shorter chapters, or less frequent but longer chapters? It really makes no difference to me. I'd also love to hear what you think. Thank you!


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